# 会社法 / Companies Act — 第三十七条 (Article 37) - Law: 会社法 (Companies Act), 平成十七年法律第八十六号 - English title "Companies Act": 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: 第三十七条 (Article 37)（発行可能株式総数の定め等） — address `art-37` - Text in force since: 2026-08-12 - URL (the page that opens at this provision): https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-37 - Permanent URL (e-Gov law ID, never renamed): https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-37 - 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. --- ### 第三十七条（発行可能株式総数の定め等） — (Provisions on Total Number of Authorized Shares) caption: Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System art-37 · https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-37 · https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-37 **第一項** 発起人は、株式会社が発行することができる株式の総数（以下「発行可能株式総数」という。）を定款で定めていない場合には、株式会社の成立の時までに、その全員の同意によって、定款を変更して発行可能株式総数の定めを設けなければならない。 art-37/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-37/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-37/par-1 If the total number of shares that may be issued by a stock company (hereinafter referred to as "total number of authorized shares") is not provided for in the articles of incorporation, the incorporators must, with the consent of all incorporators, amend the articles of incorporation and create a provision on the total number of authorized shares prior to the formation of the stock company. Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System **第二項** 発起人は、発行可能株式総数を定款で定めている場合には、株式会社の成立の時までに、その全員の同意によって、発行可能株式総数についての定款の変更をすることができる。 art-37/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-37/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-37/par-2 If the total number of authorized shares is provided for in the articles of incorporation, the incorporators may, with the consent of all incorporators, amend the articles of incorporation with respect to the total number of authorized shares at any time prior to the formation of the stock company. Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System **第三項** 設立時発行株式の総数は、発行可能株式総数の四分の一を下ることができない。ただし、設立しようとする株式会社が公開会社でない場合は、この限りでない。 art-37/par-3 · https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-37/par-3 · https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-37/par-3 The total number of shares issued at incorporation may not be less than one quarter of the total number of authorized shares; provided, however, that this does not apply if the stock company to be incorporated is not a public company. Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System ## Cited by 3 provisions cite this one. No official source publishes this direction. - 会社法 第三十条第二項（定款の認証） — https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-30/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-30/par-2 - 会社法 第九十五条第一項（発起人による定款の変更の禁止） — https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-95/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-95/par-1 - 会社法 第八百十四条第一項（株式会社の設立の特則） — https://japanlaw.org/en/companies-act/art-814/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/417AC0000000086/art-814/par-1 --- ## Sources - e-Gov 法令検索, Digital Agency (デジタル庁) — 会社法 — the text in force from 2026-08-12 (https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/417AC0000000086/20260812_508AC0000000064), retrieved 2026-09-17 - Japanese Law Translation Database System, Ministry of Justice (法務省) — Companies Act — Ministry of Justice translation (part 1 of 2) (https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/4481/tb), retrieved 2026-09-17 - This site's parser, version 211 — 会社法 — structure, counts, cross-references and defined terms, computed 2026-09-17