The Supreme Court is the highest judicial instance in Japan. The court handles appeals (Jokoku-appeals and special Kokoku-appeals) filed against judgments rendered by the high courts. The court is composed of 15 judges, all part of one Grand bench and three Petty Benches each made up of 5 Justices. Appeal cases are in first instance assigned to the three Petty Benches. Cases that are related to constitutonal matters are transferred to the Grand Bench.

Supreme Court

Appellate Courts

The High Courts are the appellate courts of the lower courts. (Koso-appeals and Kokoku-appeals). There are 8 High Courts located in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, Sendai, Sapporo and Takamatsu. The courts consist of a panel of three judges.

High Courts
High Court Fukuoka
High Court Hiroshima
High Court Nagoya
High Court Osaka
High Court Sapporo
High Court Sendai
High Court Takamatsu
High Court Tokyo

First Instance Courts

The 50 District Courts are the courts of first instance and trial on most types of civil and criminal cases. Each of the 47 prefectures has it's own district court and 3 district courts are located in the cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa and Kushiro). Most cases are disposed by a single judge, aside from more serious cases (for criminal cases with a minimum of 6 years) which are heared by a collegiate court.

District Courts
Disctrict Court of Kushiro
District Court of Aichi
District Court of Akita
District Court of Aomori
District Court of Asihakawa
District Court of Chiba
District Court of Ehime
District Court of Fukui
District Court of Fukuoka
District Court of Fukushima
District Court of Gifu
District Court of Gunma
District Court of Hakodate
District Court of Hiroshima
District Court of Hokkaido
District Court of Hyogo
District Court of Ibaraki
District Court of Ishikawa
District Court of Iwate
District Court of Kagawa
District Court of Kagoshima
District Court of Kanagawa
District Court of Kochi
District Court of Kumamoto
District Court of Kyoto
District Court of Mie
District Court of Miyagi
District Court of Miyazaki
District Court of Nagano
District Court of Nagasaki
District Court of Nara
District Court of Niigata
District Court of Oita
District Court of Okayama
District Court of Okinawa
District Court of Osaka
District Court of Saga
District Court of Saitama
District Court of Shiga
District Court of Shimane
District Court of Shizouka
District Court of Tochigi
District Court of Tokushima
District Court of Tokyo
District Court of Tottori
District Court of Toyama
District Court of Wakayama
District Court of Yamagata
District Court of Yamaguchi
District Court of Yamanashi

Minor Courts Justices of the Peace

At the lowest level thee Summary Courts trial on civil cases involving claims which do not exceed 900,000 yen and criminal cases relating to offences punishable by fines or lighter penalties. There are 438 summary courts in Japan. The courts consist ofy a single summary court judge.

Summary Courts

Court of Audit

Board of Audit

Other Courts

Family Courts
Intellectual Property High Court

Jurisprudence (Case Law)

Japanese cases relating to intellectual property
Supreme Court Judgments

Judiciary (general)

Courts in Japan
Public Prosecutors Office