# 民法 / Civil Code — 第一章 (Part 1, Chapter 1)

- Law: 民法 (Civil Code), 明治二十九年法律第八十九号
- English title "Civil Code": Ministry of Justice translation
- Kind: Act — the distinction between 法律 (Act), 政令 (Cabinet Order), 省令 (Ministerial Order) and 条例 (local ordinance) decides who may issue it and what it may say.
- Provision: 第一章 (Part 1, Chapter 1) — address `pt-1/ch-1`
- Text: the text as amended with effect from 2028-12-23 (On a day set by Cabinet Order, no later than 23 December 2028 — the amending law allows up to 30 months from promulgation. The exact day is not fixed yet.), standing until 2029-06-22 as now scheduled, since the next amendment's day is not fixed — NOT yet in force (revision 20281223_508AC0000000045)
- URL (this text's page, at this provision): https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/amendments/20281223_508AC0000000045/text/pt-1/ch-1
- The same address in the text in force (its wording there may differ): https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/pt-1/ch-1
- Every provision below carries its address and its place on this text's page on the line under it.
- Japanese text: e-Gov 法令検索, Digital Agency (デジタル庁). English: as marked on each line below.

Only the Japanese as published by the government has legal effect; the text
below is a copy of it. Every English rendering below is a translation and
says which kind: the Ministry of Justice's translation, or this
site's machine translation, whose model and date the Sources list names.
They are never merged and never substituted for one another.
The Ministry's English is given only where this text's Japanese is a wording
the Ministry translated — the same as the text in force, or for a text not yet
in force, a wording it translated ahead; every other paragraph's English is
machine translation.

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## 第一章　通則 — Chapter I Common Provisions
<sup>heading: Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>
<sup>pt-1/ch-1 · https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/amendments/20281223_508AC0000000045/text/pt-1/ch-1</sup>

### 第一条（基本原則） — (Fundamental Principles)
<sup>caption: Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>
<sup>art-1 · https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/amendments/20281223_508AC0000000045/text/pt-1/ch-1#art-1</sup>

  **第一項**  私権は、公共の福祉に適合しなければならない。
  <sup>art-1/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/amendments/20281223_508AC0000000045/text/pt-1/ch-1#art-1/par-1</sup>
  Private rights must be congruent with the public welfare.
  <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

  **第二項**  権利の行使及び義務の履行は、信義に従い誠実に行わなければならない。
  <sup>art-1/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/amendments/20281223_508AC0000000045/text/pt-1/ch-1#art-1/par-2</sup>
  The exercise of rights and performance of duties must be done in good faith.
  <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

  **第三項**  権利の濫用は、これを許さない。
  <sup>art-1/par-3 · https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/amendments/20281223_508AC0000000045/text/pt-1/ch-1#art-1/par-3</sup>
  Abuse of rights is not permitted.
  <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

### 第二条（解釈の基準） — (Standards for Construction)
<sup>caption: Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>
<sup>art-2 · https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/amendments/20281223_508AC0000000045/text/pt-1/ch-1#art-2</sup>

  **第一項**  この法律は、個人の尊厳と両性の本質的平等を旨として、解釈しなければならない。
  <sup>art-2/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/en/civil-code/amendments/20281223_508AC0000000045/text/pt-1/ch-1#art-2/par-1</sup>
  This Code must be construed so as to honor the dignity of individuals and the essential equality of both sexes.
  <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

---

## Sources

- e-Gov 法令検索, Digital Agency (デジタル庁) — 民法 — the text as 令和八年法律第四十五号 leaves it, from a date not yet fixed (https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/129AC0000000089/20281223_508AC0000000045), retrieved 2026-10-11
- Japanese Law Translation Database System, Ministry of Justice (法務省) — Civil Code — Ministry of Justice translation (part 1 of 2) (https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/4848/tb), retrieved 2026-10-11
- This site's parser, version 209 — 民法 — structure, counts, cross-references and defined terms, computed 2026-10-11