Provisional Minutes of the 17th Meeting of the Family Law Subcommittee of theLegislative Council (provisional translation)
On July 5, 2022, the 17th meeting of the Family Law Subcommittee of the Legislative
Council was held at the Ministry of Justice (in person and online). Nearly all the members
and non-voting members attended the meeting. The Chairman, Prof. OMURA Atsushi,presided over the meeting.
Continuing from the previous meeting, the Subcommittee reviewed and deliberated thedraft interim proposal and the supplementary explanation, which was prepared by theSecretariat as a summary of the various opinions given by the Subcommittee members
and non-voting members at the previous meetings.
At the meeting, there were opinions that the following concepts should be included in
the draft proposal and should be made available for public comment: (i) the law should
clearly state the factors to be considered when family court make a decision on the postdivorce custody arrangements for a child; and (ii) the law should clearly state the criteria
for deciding the circumstances under which visitation is in the best interests of the child.
Regarding visitation and the best interests of the child, some commented that arranging
an early visit to separated parents will contribute to the best interests of the child, whileothers pointed out that a careful discussion is needed because in some cases a visit may
not be in the best interests of the child.
Subsequently, regarding the rules for the mandatory disclosure of income and asset
information when determining the amounts of child support, cost of living of the married
couple, and property distribution, there were opinions that, because matters to bediscussed in the case of child support and cost of living of the married couple are different
from property distribution, the matters need to be classified accordingly before soliciting
public comment. In addition, regarding the rules for disclosure when negotiating childsupport, the cost of living of the married couple and distribution of property, there wereopinions that the Subcommittee needs to discuss further, taking into account the effectsof such rules on the substantive laws.
In addition, regarding the current Domestic Relations Case Procedure Act, there wereopinions that a system for preventing abuse of the right of filing needs to be establishedbecause if a father or a mother files for child custody repeatedly it would be a burden forthe opposing party to deal with the court procedure each time. Furthermore, it was pointed
out that if domestic violence against a child or a parent is suspected in a child custodycase, an appropriate rule should be established that gives top priority to the safety of thechild and the parent and should be included in the interim proposal.
Regarding the adoption system, there were opinions that the Subcommittee should holdfurther discussions about the cases in which the permission of the family court should berequired to adopt a minor. In addition, some members pointed out that if rules for bothparents to have parental authority after they got divorced are to be established, such rules
should be discussed in relation to the rules concerning the adoption system.
Regarding the system for distributing property, some members commented that
securing a residence for a child and a parent living with the child, their possible income,and compensation factors should be stated as factors which family courts must consider
when making a decision on the distribution of property. On the other hand, some memberscommented that the rules provided by the meeting materials should remain unchanged.
At the next meeting, the Subcommittee will continue to discuss the supplementary
explanation and the interim proposal.
※These provisional minutes are the summarized results of the subcommittee meeting and are to beprovided by the Secretariat of the Subcommittee in both Japanese and English on an as-neededbasis. The official meeting minutes (in Japanese) will be published at a later date.