Paper short abstract:

This paper analyzes the challenges faced by undergraduate legal education in Japan and offers some suggestions on how Japanese faculties of law shall address them in the next years.

Paper long abstract:

After decades of relative stability, undergraduate legal education in Japan is at a crossroads. The reasons are manifold, albeit not all are specific to Japan or to the field of law.

Technological innovation and changes in the social and economic fabric are pushing towards a rethinking of the goals and methods of higher education in many advanced countries. There are also problems specific to Japanese universities: among them, an increased competition from regional and global actors, and a bleak demographic outlook are the most critical. Many voices question whether the current system is preparing adequately Japanese students for the challenges they will face.

Besides these general changes in higher education, internationalization, new technologies, an evolving market for legal services and other factors are changing the legal profession. Japanese legal education and practice cannot insulate themselves from these trends. The introduction in 2004 of the so-called "Law Schools" adds one level of complexity to the picture, as these pressures will affect differently undergraduate legal education offered at faculties of law and legal education offered at law schools.

This paper will focus on undergraduate legal education. It will present the challenges posed by global and internal pressures on Japanese faculties of law, and will offer some suggestions to address these challenges. In particular, it will provide a tentative answer to two fundamental questions: what should be the role of Japanese faculties of law in 2030, and why would an 18 years old student want to enrol in one?