Arbitration Act

• If a party sues in court over a dispute covered by an arbitration agreement, the court must dismiss the suit when the defendant asks — unless the agreement is not effective, the arbitration cannot be carried out, or the defendant asked only after arguing the merits or making a statement on them in preparatory proceedings (弁論準備手続). An arbitration agreement does not stop a party from asking a court for a provisional remedy (保全処分), before or during the arbitration. Both rules hold whether the place of arbitration is in Japan, abroad or not yet fixed.(Art. 14(1), Art. 3(2), Art. 15(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
• Unless the parties agree otherwise, a dispute between two parties has three arbitrators: each party picks one and those two pick the third; if a party has not picked within 30 days of being asked by the other, or the two arbitrators within 30 days of their appointment, a court appoints on request. A person asked to be an arbitrator who is willing to take it up must disclose to whoever asked every fact likely to raise doubts about their impartiality or independence, and as arbitrator must disclose new ones to the parties without delay.(Art. 16(1), Art. 16(2), Art. 17(1), Art. 17(2), Art. 18(3), Art. 18(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
• A party may challenge (忌避) an arbitrator who lacks the qualifications the parties agreed on or about whose impartiality or independence there are reasonable grounds for doubt — but a party that appointed the arbitrator, or took part in the appointment, only on grounds it learned of afterwards. Unless the parties agreed a procedure, the challenge goes in writing to the arbitral tribunal within 15 days of learning that the tribunal was constituted or of the ground, whichever is later. If the tribunal rejects it, the party may apply to the court within 30 days of being notified, and the arbitration may go on meanwhile.(Art. 18(1), Art. 18(2), Art. 19(1), Art. 19(2), Art. 19(3), Art. 19(4), Art. 19(5)) (the provisions it rests on)
• The parties must be treated equally, and each must have a full opportunity to explain its case. The parties may agree on the rules of procedure, the place of arbitration and the language, short of breaching the Act's provisions on public order (公の秩序); where they have not, the arbitral tribunal (仲裁廷) decides. The tribunal applies the law the parties chose, failing that the law of the State most closely connected with the dispute, and decides on what is fair and good (衡平と善) only where both parties expressly ask.(Art. 25(1), Art. 25(2), Art. 26(1), Art. 26(2), Art. 28(1), Art. 28(2), Art. 30(1), Art. 30(2), Art. 36(1), Art. 36(2), Art. 36(3)) (the provisions it rests on)
• In arbitration begun on or after the day Act No. 15 of 2023 came into force — earlier arbitration keeps Article 24 as it read before — the arbitral tribunal may, until the award and unless the parties agree otherwise, on one party's request order the other to take interim measures (暫定保全措置命令): not to dispose of property, where enforcing a money claim or a right to delivery of property would otherwise become impossible or seriously difficult; to prevent serious harm or imminent danger to the requesting party, or restore the earlier state of things; not to obstruct the proceedings; or not to destroy or alter evidence. The requesting party must make a prima facie showing (疎明) of the right and the facts behind the request, except for an order to preserve evidence, and the tribunal may require it to give security where it finds that necessary. If the tribunal later revokes, changes or suspends the order and finds it was made through the requesting party's fault, it may order that party to pay the other side's loss, unless the parties agreed otherwise.(Art. 24(1), Art. 24(2), Art. 24(3), Art. 24(4), Art. 24(5), Art. 24(8), Suppl. Prov. Art. 4(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
• An arbitral award, wherever it was made, has the same effect as a final and binding court judgment unless one of the grounds the Act lists exists — such as an invalid agreement, a party unable to defend itself, or an award against public policy in Japan — but it can be enforced only once a court has made an enforceability order (執行決定). A party may ask the court to set aside an award made in Japan only on the grounds the Act lists — among them an invalid agreement, not being given a required notice, being unable to present a defence, an award beyond the agreement or the claims, or an award against public policy in Japan — and must itself prove most of them. That request is barred three months after the award was sent, or once an enforceability order has become final.(Art. 45(1), Art. 45(2), Art. 3(1), Art. 44(1), Art. 44(2), Art. 44(5)) (the provisions it rests on)
• A party that says the tribunal has no authority to hear the case must say so by its first written statement on the merits, or promptly if the cause arises during the proceedings, unless the tribunal accepts a good reason for the delay; if the tribunal rules in a separate decision before the award that it has authority, a party may ask a court to decide within 30 days of being notified. Unless the parties agree otherwise, a party that knows a rule of the Act or of the agreed procedure, not one concerning public order, is not being followed and does not object without delay is treated as having given up its right to object.(Art. 23(1), Art. 23(2), Art. 23(4), Art. 23(5), Art. 27(1)) (the provisions it rests on)

• 21 May 2026

  The text on this site

  Act Partially Amending the Code of Civil Procedure, etc.

  民事訴訟法等の一部を改正する法律

  Act No. 48 of 2022The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 1 October 2025

  Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts to Promote the Use of Information and Communications Technology in Civil Procedures, etc.

  民事関係手続等における情報通信技術の活用等の推進を図るための関係法律の整備に関する法律

  Act No. 53 of 2023The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 1 June 2025

  Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Penal Code, etc.

  刑法等の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整理等に関する法律

  Act No. 68 of 2022The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 1 April 2024

  Act Partially Amending the Arbitration Act

  仲裁法の一部を改正する法律

  Act No. 15 of 2023The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 1 March 2024

  Act Partially Amending the Code of Civil Procedure, etc.

  民事訴訟法等の一部を改正する法律

  Act No. 48 of 2022The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 14 June 2023

  Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts to Promote the Use of Information and Communications Technology in Civil Procedures, etc.

  民事関係手続等における情報通信技術の活用等の推進を図るための関係法律の整備に関する法律

  Act No. 53 of 2023The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 17 June 2022

  Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Penal Code, etc.

  刑法等の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整理等に関する法律

  Act No. 68 of 2022The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 25 May 2022

  Act Partially Amending the Code of Civil Procedure, etc.

  民事訴訟法等の一部を改正する法律

  Act No. 48 of 2022The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 1 April 2020

  Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Civil Code

  民法の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整備等に関する法律

  Act No. 45 of 2017The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

• 2 June 2017

  Act on the Arrangement of Related Acts upon the Enforcement of the Act Partially Amending the Civil Code

  民法の一部を改正する法律の施行に伴う関係法律の整備等に関する法律

  Act No. 45 of 2017The text after this amendment, on e-Gov

All 11 amendments already in force

• For the time being (当分の間), a consumer may cancel (解除) an arbitration agreement with a business that covers future civil disputes, other than individual labor-related disputes, and was made after the Act came into force, unless the consumer started the arbitration. A consumer is an individual not contracting as or for a business, as the Consumer Contract Act (消費者契約法) defines it.(Suppl. Prov. Art. 3(1), Suppl. Prov. Art. 3(2), Consumer Contract Act Art. 2(1), Consumer Contract Act Art. 2(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
• If the business starts the arbitration under such an agreement, the tribunal must first hold an oral hearing and explain to the consumer, by letter and in person, that the award will bind like a court judgment, that a court suit would be dismissed, and that the consumer may cancel. A consumer who does not attend, or does not clearly give up the right to cancel, is treated as having cancelled.(Suppl. Prov. Art. 3(3), Suppl. Prov. Art. 3(4), Suppl. Prov. Art. 3(5), Suppl. Prov. Art. 3(6), Suppl. Prov. Art. 3(7)) (the provisions it rests on)
• For the time being, an arbitration agreement made after the Act came into force that covers future individual labor-related disputes (個別労働関係紛争) is void. These are disputes between an individual worker and an employer over working conditions and other labor matters, including a job seeker's over recruitment and hiring, as the Act on Promoting the Resolution of Individual Labor-Related Disputes defines them.(Suppl. Prov. Art. 4(1), Act on Promoting the Resolution of Individual Labor-Related Disputes Art. 1(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
• Many rules of the procedure give way to what the parties agree — how arbitrators are appointed and challenged, the procedure, whether oral hearings are held, and the use of experts. But an agreement cannot take away a party's right to ask a court to appoint an arbitrator when the agreed method fails, or to decide a challenge the tribunal rejected, and agreed rules of procedure cannot breach the Act's provisions on public order.(Art. 17(1), Art. 17(5), Art. 19(1), Art. 19(4), Art. 26(1), Art. 32(2), Art. 34(5)) (the provisions it rests on)

• Courts may act in arbitration only where this Act says so. Unless a provision names other courts, the cases go to the district court (地方裁判所) the parties agreed on, the one for the place of arbitration where that place lies within one district court's area, or the one for the respondent's general venue (普通裁判籍); where the place of arbitration is in Japan, Tokyo and Osaka District Courts may also be asked. A request to enforce an award or an interim order may also go to the court for the place of the respondent's attachable property or of the subject of the claim, and to Tokyo or Osaka District Court where that place, the place of arbitration or the respondent's general venue is in Japan.(Art. 4(1), Art. 5(1), Art. 5(2), Art. 46(4), Art. 47(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
• A party that wants to enforce an award asks the court for an enforceability order, naming the debtor as respondent and filing the award's documents, including a Japanese translation unless the award is in Japanese; the court may waive the translation after hearing the respondent. The court must grant the order unless the respondent proves one of the grounds the Act lists, or the court finds that the dispute could not go to arbitration under Japanese law or that the award is against public policy in Japan.(Art. 46(1), Art. 46(2), Art. 46(6), Art. 46(7), Art. 45(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
• The party that obtained an interim order, from a tribunal in Japan or abroad, may ask the court for an enforcement approval order (執行等認可決定), which takes effect only once final. For an order to prevent harm or restore the earlier state of things, it allows civil enforcement (民事執行); for the other kinds of order, it allows the court to order payment of a penalty (違反金支払命令). The court must grant it unless the respondent proves one of the grounds the Act lists — among them that the requesting party did not give the security the tribunal ordered, or that the interim order has been revoked, changed or suspended — or the court finds the dispute could not go to arbitration under Japanese law or the order is against public policy in Japan.(Art. 47(1), Art. 47(6), Art. 47(7), Art. 47(9), Art. 48(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
• Where an enforcement approval order is final and the person bound breaches an interim order not to dispose of property, obstruct the proceedings or destroy evidence, the court may on request order that person to pay an amount of money it finds appropriate, weighing the interest the breach harms and how far it is harmed; where a breach is only likely, the payment is ordered on condition that the person breaches. The penalty order takes effect only once final, and the requesting party may still claim damages for any loss beyond the amount paid. The rules on enforcement approval and penalty payment orders apply to interim orders made in arbitration begun on or after the day Act No. 15 of 2023 came into force.(Art. 49(1), Art. 49(5), Art. 49(6), Suppl. Prov. Art. 2(5)) (the provisions it rests on)
• The arbitral tribunal, or a party with the tribunal's consent, may ask a court to take evidence the tribunal finds necessary — among them examining witnesses, expert evidence and inspection — under the Code of Civil Procedure (民事訴訟法), unless the parties have agreed not to.(Art. 35(1), Art. 35(2)) (the provisions it rests on)
• A court's decision under this Act can be challenged only where the Act allows it, by an immediate appeal (即時抗告) by a person with an interest in it, within two weeks of being notified — the Act allows one against, among others, decisions on setting an award aside, on an enforceability order, on an enforcement approval order for an interim order, on a penalty payment order and on court evidence-taking. A court decides on setting aside or enforcing an award or an interim order only after oral argument or a hearing both parties can attend.(Art. 7(1), Art. 44(4), Art. 44(7), Art. 46(9), Art. 47(10), Art. 49(8), Art. 35(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
• Chapter 10 makes bribery of arbitrators a crime. An arbitrator who accepts, asks for or agrees to a bribe in connection with their duties faces imprisonment (拘禁刑) of up to 5 years, up to 7 years if they accepted a request (請託), and at least 1 year if they then acted wrongfully or failed to act; people about to become arbitrators and former arbitrators are caught in narrower cases, and bribes are confiscated (没収). A person who gives, offers or promises a bribe faces imprisonment of up to 3 years or a fine (罰金) of up to 2,500,000 yen.(Art. 53(1), Art. 53(2), Art. 55(1), Art. 55(3), Art. 56(1), Art. 57(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
• The arbitrators' bribery offences are punished even when committed outside Japan. Giving a bribe outside Japan is punished whoever commits it, as the Penal Code (刑法) provides for the crimes listed in its Article 2.(Art. 58(1), Art. 58(2), Penal Code Art. 2(1)) (the provisions it rests on)
• Unless the parties agree otherwise, a claimant that does not state its claim within the period the tribunal set has its arbitration ended, unless it had good reason; a respondent that does not answer is not treated as admitting the claim, and the arbitration goes on. A party that, without good reason, does not attend an oral hearing or produce documentary evidence may have the award made on the evidence gathered so far.(Art. 31(1), Art. 31(2), Art. 33(1), Art. 33(2), Art. 33(3), Art. 33(4)) (the provisions it rests on)
• Unless the parties agree otherwise, the tribunal may order the parties to pay in advance, within a reasonable period it sets, the amount it estimates the arbitration will cost, and may suspend or end the arbitration if it is not paid. Without an agreement on sharing costs, each party bears what it spent; the arbitrators' fees are what the parties agreed or, failing that, a reasonable amount the tribunal sets.(Art. 51(1), Art. 51(2), Art. 52(1), Art. 52(2), Art. 50(1), Art. 50(2)) (the provisions it rests on)