# 商法 / Commercial Code — 第十六条 (Article 16) This is the Markdown twin of https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16. Every law, and how to address a provision: https://japanlaw.org/llms.txt. The same laws as MCP tools (no sign-in): https://japanlaw.org/mcp. - Law: 商法 (Commercial Code), 明治三十二年法律第四十八号 - English title "Commercial 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: 第十六条 (Article 16)（営業譲渡人の競業の禁止） — address `art-16` - Text in force since: 2026-06-24 - URL (the page that opens at this provision): https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16 - Permanent URL (e-Gov law ID, never renamed): https://japanlaw.org/l/132AC0000000048/art-16 - Every provision below carries its address and both URLs 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. --- ### 第十六条（営業譲渡人の競業の禁止） — (Non-Competition by Transferor of Business) caption: Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System art-16 · https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16 · https://japanlaw.org/l/132AC0000000048/art-16 **第一項** 営業を譲渡した商人（以下この章において「譲渡人」という。）は、当事者の別段の意思表示がない限り、同一の市町村（特別区を含むものとし、地方自治法（昭和二十二年法律第六十七号）第二百五十二条の十九第一項の指定都市にあっては、区又は総合区。以下同じ。）の区域内及びこれに隣接する市町村の区域内においては、その営業を譲渡した日から二十年間は、同一の営業を行ってはならない。 art-16/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/132AC0000000048/art-16/par-1 Unless the parties manifest a different intention, a merchant that transfers business (hereinafter referred to as the "transferor" in this Chapter) must not engage in the same line of business within the limits of the same city, town, or village (including within the limits of the same special ward; or within the limits of the same ward or administratively consolidated ward, as it concerns designated cities referred to in Article 252-19, paragraph (1) of the Local Autonomy Act (Act No. 67 of 1947); the same applies hereinafter), or within the limits of a neighboring city, town, or village, for 20 years after the day of the business transfer. Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System **第二項** 譲渡人が同一の営業を行わない旨の特約をした場合には、その特約は、その営業を譲渡した日から三十年の期間内に限り、その効力を有する。 art-16/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/132AC0000000048/art-16/par-2 If a transferor specifically agrees not to engage in the same line of business, that special agreement is only valid for 30 years after the day of the business transfer. Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System **第三項** 前二項の規定にかかわらず、譲渡人は、不正の競争の目的をもって同一の営業を行ってはならない。 art-16/par-3 · https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16/par-3 · https://japanlaw.org/l/132AC0000000048/art-16/par-3 Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding two paragraphs, the transferor must not engage in the same line of business with the intention of engaging in unfair competition. Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System --- ## Cites - art-16/par-1: 地方自治法（昭和二十二年法律第六十七号）第二百五十二条の十九第一項 → e-Gov law 322AC0000000067, 第二百五十二条の十九第一項 (Article 252-19, paragraph (1)), art-252-19/par-1 — not held in this collection - art-16/par-3: 前二項 → 商法 第十六条第一項 (Article 16, paragraph (1)), art-16/par-1 — https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/132AC0000000048/art-16/par-1 - art-16/par-3: 前二項 → 商法 第十六条第二項 (Article 16, paragraph (2)), art-16/par-2 — https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/132AC0000000048/art-16/par-2 ## Cited by 2 provisions cite this one. No official source publishes this direction. - 会社法 第二十四条第一項（商人との間での事業の譲渡又は譲受け） — https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-24/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-24/par-1 - 商法 第十六条第三項（営業譲渡人の競業の禁止） — https://japanlaw.org/en/commercial-code/art-16/par-3 · https://japanlaw.org/l/132AC0000000048/art-16/par-3 --- ## Sources - e-Gov 法令検索, Digital Agency (デジタル庁) — 商法 — the text in force from 2026-06-24 (https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/132AC0000000048/20260624_508AC0000000046), retrieved 2026-11-05 - Japanese Law Translation Database System, Ministry of Justice (法務省) — Commercial Code — Ministry of Justice translation (https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/4293/tb), retrieved 2026-11-05 - This site's parser, version 224 — 商法 — structure, counts, cross-references and defined terms, computed 2026-11-05