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Attorneys at law (弁護士, bengoshi^?, lit. “advocate”) form a legal profession in Japan. Attorneys at law are the only individuals authorized to represent others in district courts, high courts, and the Supreme Court, and are also authorized to give advice regarding any matter of law.

Attorneys at law are required to pass a national bar examination (司法試験, shihō shiken^?) followed by one year of study and clerkship supervised by the Legal Research and Training Institute (司法研修所, Shihō Kenshūjo^?) of the Supreme Court of Japan in Wako, Saitama.

The bar examination historically consisted of three stages. The first stage, held in May, consisted of written short answers to questions regarding constitutional law, civil law and criminal law. The second stage, held over two days in July, consisted of longer essay questions regarding constitutional law, civil law, criminal law, commercial law, civil procedure law and criminal procedure law. The final stage, held in October, was an oral examination regarding constitutional law, civil law, criminal law, civil procedure law and criminal procedure law). Final results were published in mid-November. On average, 40,000 to 50,000 people took the first stage, 7,000 to 8,000 qualified for the second stage, and only 1,500 qualified for the oral examination each year.

In 2006, a new bar examination was instituted with only two stages. The first stage is a one-day short-answer examination concerning the six laws as well as administrative law. The second stage is a three-day essay examination concerning public law, civil law and criminal law, as well as subjects that can be selected by the examinee (including labor law, environmental law, public international law, and private international law). 2,137 people took the bar examination in 2006; approximately 900 to 1,100 are expected to pass.

For the 2006 bar examination, a law school requirement was also instituted. All attorneys must now complete a two-year or three-year graduate program, and are limited to taking the examination three times within five years after graduation. Those who have not graduated from law school may take the bar examination after passing a preliminary qualifying examination.

Previously, attorneys qualified in foreign countries could become attorneys at law in Japan with special permission from the Supreme Court. These individuals were referred to as “quasi-members” (準会員, junkaiin^?) of the bar. This system was halted following World War II, and only five quasi-members are still in practice today; they were replaced by a separate qualification, attorney at foreign law (gaikokuhō jimu bengoshi) in 1985. In addition to the quasi-members, attorneys in Okinawa who had been admitted as US attorneys were admitted as Japanese attorneys following the repatriation of Okinawa in 1972: thirteen grandfathered Okinawa attorneys are still in practice as of April 1, 2005.[1]

Attorneys at law are automatically qualified to practice in most Japanese legal professions (e.g. judicial scrivener, administrative scrivener, patent agent), except as certified public accountants or land surveyors.

All attorneys must be a member of the bar association for the prefecture in which they practice. Tokyo has three bar associations due to its disproportionately high number of attorneys: the Tokyo Bar Association, First Tokyo Bar Association, and Second Tokyo Bar Association. (The names are based upon their order of foundation and do not indicate any reputational hierarchy.)

As of April 1, 2005, there were 21,208 attorneys registered with bar associations in Japan, 12.5% of whom were female. [2] While many attorneys are in solo practice, large law firms exist in Tokyo, Osaka and other major cities, and have grown dramatically in recent years. According to a May 2004 survey, the average Japanese attorney is paid ¥17,000,000 (about US$150,000) per year.

• Judicial system of Japan

• Japan Federation of Bar Associations