Japan Process Server

Overview

Process Server in Japan: How Service of Process Works

Japan has been a Hague Service Convention signatory since 1970, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) designated as its Central Authority. For decades, direct postal service was commonly used, but on December 21, 2018, Japan formally objected to Article 10(a), closing that route. Since then, valid service into Japan requires a request through MOFA, which refers the matter to the competent Japanese court for service by a court marshal or Japan's own internal special postal service. Every document must be fully translated into Japanese; both MOFA's Consular Affairs Bureau and the Civil Affairs Bureau of the Supreme Court of Japan review the translation page by page, and any gap results in rejection.

In Japan, how you serve decides whether a U.S. judgment can ever be collected there. A foreign judgment is enforced only through a Japanese execution judgment under Article 24 of the Civil Execution Act, and the Japanese court first checks the four conditions in Article 118 of the Code of Civil Procedure.

Those conditions are: the foreign court had jurisdiction; the defendant was properly served or appeared; the judgment and proceedings do not offend Japanese public order; and there is reciprocity with the foreign country. Japan's Supreme Court held in 1998 that service must comply with any applicable treaty to count, and Japanese courts have refused to recognize foreign judgments where papers were sent without a Japanese translation.

That is why careful plaintiffs use the Central Authority route, with full Japanese translations, whenever the defendant has assets in Japan. Japan's 2018 objection to postal service removed most remaining doubt, and the punitive part of a U.S. judgment may still be refused on public order grounds even after proper service.

Who serves process

Who Can Serve Legal Documents in Japan

In Japan, service is an official act of the courts. For requests from abroad, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan's Central Authority, sends the documents to the competent court, which serves them by special postal service under Article 49 of the Mail Act, with the postal worker preparing a report of service, or through a court marshal.

Japan objected to postal service under Article 10(a) on December 21, 2018, and it also opposes service under Article 10(b) and (c). Service through the Central Authority is therefore the reliable route. Japan requires a full Japanese translation of every document, and Japan's Supreme Court has held that improper service can block enforcement of a foreign judgment in Japan.

For defendants in Tokyo or elsewhere in Japan, the usual starting point is a statement of claim with a summons to appear; orders, notices and enforcement papers follow later in a case. Defendants may be anywhere from Tokyo to Kyushu & Okinawa, and we cover the whole country.

The rules

Japan Service of Process Rules

The rules that govern service in Japan:

Treaties

Hague Service Convention and Japan

Japan is a party to the Hague Service Convention, so documents can be sent to its Central Authority, which arranges service and returns a Certificate of Service. Japan has made a declaration on Article 10, which limits service by post or by private agents, so we confirm which methods are open before choosing one.

Japan is not a party to the Hague Evidence Convention, so requests for witness testimony or documents go through letters rogatory.