# 少年法 / Juveniles Act — 第三条 (Article 3)

This is the Markdown twin of https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3. 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: 少年法 (Juveniles Act), 昭和二十三年法律第百六十八号
- English title "Juveniles 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: 第三条 (Article 3)（審判に付すべき少年） — address `art-3`
- Text in force since: 2026-06-24
- URL (the page that opens at this provision): https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3
- Permanent URL (e-Gov law ID, never renamed): https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3
- 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.

---

### 第三条（審判に付すべき少年） — (Juveniles Subject to Trial and Decision)
<sup>caption: Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>
<sup>art-3 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3</sup>

  **第一項**  次に掲げる少年は、これを家庭裁判所の審判に付する。
  <sup>art-3/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1</sup>
  A juvenile to whom any of the following items applies is subjected to a trial and decision of the family court:
  <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

    **一**  罪を犯した少年
    <sup>art-3/par-1/item-1 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-1</sup>
    a juvenile who has committed a crime;
    <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

    **二**  十四歳に満たないで刑罰法令に触れる行為をした少年
    <sup>art-3/par-1/item-2 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-2</sup>
    a juvenile under 14 years of age whose actions violate criminal laws or regulations;
    <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

    **三**  次に掲げる事由があつて、その性格又は環境に照して、将来、罪を犯し、又は刑罰法令に触れる行為をする虞のある少年
    <sup>art-3/par-1/item-3 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-3 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-3</sup>
    a juvenile who, due to any of the following reasons and taking into consideration the juvenile's character or environment, is likely to commit a crime or violate criminal laws or regulations:
    <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

      **イ**  保護者の正当な監督に服しない性癖のあること。
      <sup>art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-1 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-1</sup>
      has a tendency not to abide by their parent or guardian's proper supervision;
      <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

      **ロ**  正当の理由がなく家庭に寄り附かないこと。
      <sup>art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-2 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-2</sup>
      stays away from home without just cause;
      <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

      **ハ**  犯罪性のある人若しくは不道徳な人と交際し、又はいかがわしい場所に出入すること。
      <sup>art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-3 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-3 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-3</sup>
      associates with persons of a criminal nature or who are immoral, or frequent questionable places;
      <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

      **ニ**  自己又は他人の徳性を害する行為をする性癖のあること。
      <sup>art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-4 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-4 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-3/sub-4</sup>
      has a tendency to act in a way that harms one's own moral character or that of others.
      <sup>Ministry of Justice translation with a slip corrected by this site — not the Ministry's text; the Ministry printed: "has a tendency to act in way that harms one's own moral character or that of others." — https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/4827/tb</sup>

  **第二項**  家庭裁判所は、前項第二号に掲げる少年及び同項第三号に掲げる少年で十四歳に満たない者については、都道府県知事又は児童相談所長から送致を受けたときに限り、これを審判に付することができる。
  <sup>art-3/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-2</sup>
  The family court may subject a juvenile, as prescribed in item (ii) of the preceding paragraph or a juvenile as prescribed in item (iii) of that paragraph, who is under 14 years of age to a trial and decision only when a prefectural governor or a director of a child guidance center refers the juvenile to the family court.
  <sup>Ministry of Justice translation — Japanese Law Translation Database System</sup>

---

## Cites
- art-3/par-2: 前項第二号 → 少年法 第三条第一項第二号 (Article 3, paragraph (1), item (ii)), art-3/par-1/item-2 — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-2
- art-3/par-2: 同項第三号 → 少年法 第三条第一項第三号 (Article 3, paragraph (1), item (iii)), art-3/par-1/item-3 — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-1/item-3 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-1/item-3

## Cited by

17 provisions cite this one. No official source publishes this direction.

- 少年法 第三条第二項（審判に付すべき少年） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-3/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-3/par-2
- 少年法 第五条の二第一項（被害者等による記録の閲覧及び謄写） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-5-2/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-5-2/par-1
- 少年法 第六条第二項（通告） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-6/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-6/par-2
- 少年法 第六条の二第一項（警察官等の調査） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-6-2/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-6-2/par-1
- 少年法 第六条の五第一項（押収、捜索、検証、鑑定嘱託等） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-6-5/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-6-5/par-1
- 少年法 第六条の六第一項第一号（警察官の送致等） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-6-6/par-1/item-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-6-6/par-1/item-1
- 少年法 第六条の六第一項第二号（警察官の送致等） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-6-6/par-1/item-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-6-6/par-1/item-2
- 少年法 第九条の二第一項（被害者等の申出による意見の聴取） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-9-2/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-9-2/par-1
- 少年法 第十七条第四項（観護の措置） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-17/par-4 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-17/par-4
- 少年法 第二十二条の二第一項（検察官の関与） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-22-2/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-22-2/par-1
- 少年法 第二十二条の三第二項（国選付添人） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-22-3/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-22-3/par-2
- 少年法 第二十二条の四第一項（被害者等による少年審判の傍聴） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-22-4/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-22-4/par-1
- 少年法 第二十二条の四第二項（被害者等による少年審判の傍聴） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-22-4/par-2 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-22-4/par-2
- 少年法 第二十二条の六第一項（被害者等に対する説明） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-22-6/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-22-6/par-1
- 少年法 第二十四条の二第一項（没取） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-24-2/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-24-2/par-1
- 少年法 第三十一条の二第一項（被害者等に対する通知） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-31-2/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-31-2/par-1
- 少年法 第六十五条第一項（この法律の適用関係） — https://japanlaw.org/ja/juvenile-act/art-65/par-1 · https://japanlaw.org/l/323AC0000000168/art-65/par-1

---

## Sources

- claude-opus-5-5 — Corrections to the Ministry of Justice's English of the Juveniles Act, written 2026-11-03
- e-Gov 法令検索, Digital Agency (デジタル庁) — 少年法 — the text in force from 2026-06-24 (https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/323AC0000000168/20260624_508AC0000000046), retrieved 2026-11-02
- Japanese Law Translation Database System, Ministry of Justice (法務省) — Juveniles Act (少年法), Article 3, paragraph (1), item (iii), (d) — the Ministry of Justice's English as printed (https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/4827/tb), retrieved 2026-11-02
- Japanese Law Translation Database System, Ministry of Justice (法務省) — Juveniles Act — Ministry of Justice translation (https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/4827/tb), retrieved 2026-11-02
- This site's parser, version 220 — 少年法 — structure, counts, cross-references and defined terms, computed 2026-11-02