①A hearing is presided over by an employee nominated by an administrative agency or other persons specified by Cabinet Order.

②A person who falls under any of the following items may not preside over a hearing:

①At the beginning of the first date of the hearing, the presiding official must have an employee of an administrative agency explain the content of the anticipated adverse disposition, the provisions of laws and regulations which are the basis of the adverse disposition, and the facts that are to be the cause of the adverse disposition to the persons who appeared on the date of the hearing.

②Relevant persons or intervenors may appear on the date of the hearing, and state their opinions and submit evidence documents or other evidence, and ask questions to the employees of the administrative agency with the approval of the presiding official.

③In the case referred to in the preceding paragraph, relevant persons or intervenors may appear together with assistants with the permission of the presiding official.

④When the presiding official finds it necessary, they may ask questions to the relevant persons or intervenors, call upon the relevant persons or intervenors to state opinions or submit evidence documents or other evidence, or request employees of the administrative agency to provide explanations.

⑤Even if some relevant persons or intervenors do not make an appearance, the presiding official may conduct the proceedings on the date of the hearing.

⑥Expect when an administrative agency finds it appropriate to open the proceedings to the public, proceedings on the date of hearings will be closed to the public.

①In lieu of appearing on the date of a hearing, relevant persons, or intervenors may submit written statements and evidence documents or other evidence to the presiding official on or before the date of the hearing.

②The presiding official may present the written statements and evidence documents or other evidence referred to in the preceding paragraph to the person who has appeared on the date of the hearing, at their request.

①If the presiding official finds it necessary to continue the hearing based on the results of the proceedings on the date of the hearing, they may set a new date for hearing.

②In the case referred to in the preceding paragraph, a written notice of the date and place of the next hearing must be given to relevant persons and intervenors, in advance; provided, however, that for the relevant persons and intervenors who have appeared on the date of hearing, it is sufficient to announce those matters on the date of the hearing.

③The provisions of Article 15, paragraphs (3) and (4) apply mutatis mutandis to the method of giving notice when the whereabouts of relevant persons or intervenors are unknown, in the case referred to in the main clause of the preceding paragraph. In such a case, the term "person to be subject of the adverse disposition" in paragraphs (3) and (4) of that Article is deemed to be replaced with the "relevant persons or intervenors," and the term "when two weeks have passed since the day on which the measures were commenced" in paragraph (4) of that Article is deemed to be replaced with "when two weeks have passed since the day on which the measures were commenced (for the notices counting from the second notice to be given to the same relevant person or intervenor, on the day following the day of commencement of the measures)".

①If some or all of the relevant persons fail to appear on the date of a hearing without legitimate grounds, and, they do not submit written statements or evidence documents or other evidence prescribed in Article 21, paragraph (1), or if some or all of the intervenors fail to appear on the date of a hearing, the presiding official may conclude the hearing without granting those persons another opportunity to state their opinions and submit evidence documents or other evidence.

②In addition to the case prescribed in the preceding paragraph, if some or all of the relevant persons fail to appear on the date of a hearing and do not submit written statements or evidence documents or other evidence prescribed in Article 21, paragraph (1), and when those persons are not expected to appear on a date for the hearing for a considerable period of time, the presiding official may ask them to submit written statements and evidence documents or other evidence by setting a due date, and when the due date arrives, may conclude the hearing.

①The presiding official must prepare a record of the proceedings of the hearing, and must clarify the outline of the statements by relevant persons and intervenors on the facts that are the cause of an adverse disposition in the record.

②The record stated in the preceding paragraph must be prepared for each date of the hearing when proceedings are conducted on the date of the hearing, and if the proceedings are not conducted, promptly after the hearing is concluded.

③After the hearing is concluded, the presiding official must promptly prepare a written report stating their opinion as to whether there are any grounds for the assertion of the relevant persons or other persons concerning the facts that are to be the cause of the adverse disposition, and submit the report to the administrative agency together with the record referred to in paragraph (1).

④Relevant persons and intervenors may request inspection of the records referred to in paragraph (1) and the written report referred to in the preceding paragraph.

When an administrative agency finds it necessary in view of the circumstances that have arisen after the conclusion of a hearing, it may order the presiding official to reopen the hearing by returning the written report submitted pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (3) of the preceding Article to the presiding official. The provisions of the main clause of Article 22, paragraph (2) and paragraph (3) of that Article apply mutatis mutandis to that case.

When making a decision on rendering an adverse disposition, an administrative agency must make the decision after fully taking into account the content of the record referred to in Article 24, paragraph (1) and of the opinion of the presiding official stated in the written report referred to in paragraph (3) of that Article.

A request for review may not be filed against dispositions based on the provisions of this Section or their inaction.

①In the hearing on an adverse disposition which falls under Article 13, paragraph (1), item (i) sub-item (c), if the notice referred to in Article 15, paragraph (1) has been given, for applying the provisions of this Section, the officers of the corporation that is the subject of the adverse disposition, the persons engaged in the operation of that subject, or the members of that subject (limited to the persons who are to be dismissed or expelled by the disposition) are deemed to be the persons who have received the notice referred to in that paragraph.

②If hearings related to the adverse disposition stated in the preceding paragraph that order the dismissal of officers of the corporation that is the subject to the adverse disposition or the persons engaged in the operation of that subject (referred to as "officers or other employees"), notwithstanding the provisions of Article 13, paragraph (1), an administrative agency is not required to conduct hearings for the officers or other employees related to the adverse disposition which are rendered pursuant to the provisions of laws and regulations to dismiss the officers or other employees due to the fact that the subject does not obey the disposition.

①Except when an administrative agencies agency authorizes giving an explanation orally, explanation is to be made by submitting a document stating an explanation (referred to as "written explanation" below).

②When giving an explanation, evidence documents or other evidence may be submitted.

An administrative agency must notify the person that are to be subject of an adverse disposition of the following matters after providing a reasonable period of time before the deadline of the submission of a written explanation (when granting an opportunity for giving an explanation orally, before the date and time of that explanation):

The provisions of Article 15, paragraphs (3) and (4), and Article 16 apply mutatis mutandis to the grant of opportunities for explanation. In such a case, the terms "paragraph (1)" in Article 15, paragraph (3), "paragraph (1), items (iii) and (iv)" in Article 15, paragraph (4), and "paragraph (1) of the preceding Article", and "the second sentence of paragraph (4) of that Article" in Article 16, paragraph (1) are deemed to be replaced with "Article 30", "Article 30, item (iii)", "Article 30", and "the second sentence of paragraph (4), Article 15 as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 31", respectively.