Foundations of Japanese Law Executive Education Programme – Relaunch January 2024

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The New Executive Education Programme

The executive education programme on Japanese law, one of a kind in Europe, was relaunched in January 2024. The FernUniversität in Hagen has been offering an executive education programme on Japan’s legal system at the Institute of Japanese Law for 35 years. Now this programme is part of the Department of East Asian Law (formerly the Department of Japanese Law) headed by ​​​​​​Jun-Prof Dr Julius Weitzdörfer. To ensure a successful restart, this programme has been fully updated in terms of content and has been supplemented with multimedia and interactive features as well as modernized teaching methods such as podcasts, videos, quizzes and live events, both online and in person.

The programme, awarding a certificate, covers public law, including criminal law, as well as Japanese private law, and allows students to focus on individual areas of interest by choosing elective modules, such as labour law or company law. Enrolment is possible at any time.

The new executive education programme stands out with the following advantages:

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  • Updated and expanded study materials with the latest case law and legislation, including Japanese criminal law for the first time
  • Diploma of Advanced Studies degree recognised by the Federal Ministry of Education in accordance with the German Qualifications Framework (DQR 7)
  • Full access to numerous legal databases
  • Interlibrary loan of approx. 6,000 volumes and 17 Japanese subscription journals from our extensive Japanese law library
  • Access to our network of experts and around 400 alumni worldwide as well as the right to participate in future exclusive study trips to Japan
  • Full flexibility in terms of location and time; start of programme at any time; knowledge of the Japanese language not required
  • Individual specialisation due to elective modules and selectable coursework topics

  • Japanese law studies are not a standard programme at German universities, even though Japan’s legal system especially can be an interesting field of activity for German lawyers. This is closely connected to its history of origin: Current Japanese law is the result of a differentiated process of reception that began after the Meiji Restoration (1868), in which the tradition and insights of modern Western law were merged into an independent system characterised by the Japanese perspective by means of comparative law. Even though German law played a significant role in this process, foreign law was by no means simply copied in Japan. These astonishing facts are still too little known.

    The study of Japanese law also makes sense for pragmatic reasons. Japan is the third strongest economic power in the world and accordingly has political weight on the international stage. As a gateway to the Asian markets, especially to China, Japan offers a significant advantage over all other countries in the region. As a reliable economic partner, Japan has a stable legal, social and political system that can be utilised to establish oneself on the Japanese and Asian markets. A solid knowledge of the legal system is a key pillar of sustainable economic success.

    Our certificate programme was developed in cooperation with leading Japanologists and legal scholars from renowned Japanese universities and provides sound, systematic and practical knowledge in key areas of Japanese law. Understanding is facilitated by comparisons with German law, emphasising significant similarities, differences and peculiarities of both legal systems. By including historical, social, political and economic background information, the Japanese understanding of law and insights into the functions of institutions and specific regulations in the Japanese legal system are also conveyed.

  • Upon successful completion of the programme, you will be awarded a university certificate with 40 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) credit points. This is recognised by the German Federal Ministry of Education as a Diploma of Advanced Studies (DAS) in accordance with the German Qualifications Framework (DQR 7), Germany. The completion of additional elective modules can be included in your certificate with 10 ECTS credits each.

    The standard period of study for the part-time executive education programme is two semesters. The programme consists of three basic modules as well as an online or hybrid final seminar covering all modules. Elective modules can be taken in addition to that.

    After completing the basic modules, students can take the final seminar covering all modules each semester (10 ECTS). This involves writing a final paper about a (self-chosen) topic and giving a presentation about its contents as part of a hybrid final seminar.

  • The following basic modules must be completed:

    Module 0: Methodological Approach (10 ECTS)

    Course unit CL – Introduction to Comparative Law

    Module 1: Public Law (10 ECTS)

    Course unit J1 – Japan: Society, Politics and Economy – Prof Dr Ulrike Nennstiel (Hokusei Gakuen University) / Prof Dr Werner Pascha (Emeritus at Universität Duisburg-Essen) / Dr Jan-Martin Wilhelm

    Course unit J2 – Historical Background of the Private and Constitutional Legal System – Prof Dr Junichi Murakami (Emeritus at University of Tōkyō) / Prof Dr Hans-Peter Marutschke (Emeritus at Dōshisha University)

    Course unit J3 – Judicial System in the Past and Present – Prof Dr Masasuke Ishibe / Prof Dr Hans-Peter Marutschke (Emeritus at Dōshisha University)

    Course unit J4 – Constitutional Law I: State Organisation Law – Prof Dr Hans-Peter Marutschke (Emeritus at Dōshisha University) / Prof. Tomoaki Kurishima (Saitama University)

    Course unit J5 – Constitutional Law II: Fundamental Rights – Prof Dr Hans-Peter Marutschke (Emeritus at Dōshisha University) / Prof Tomoaki Kurishima (Saitama University)

    Course unit J6 – Criminal Law – Prof Dr Dr Keiichi Yamanaka (Kansai University)

    Module 2: Private Law (10 ECTS)​​​​​​​

    Course unit J7 – Private Law I: Overview – Prof Kunihiro Nakata (Ryukoku University)

    Course unit J8 – Private Law II: General Part of the Japanese Civil Code – Prof Tamotsu Isomura (Kōbe University) / Prof Dr Hans-Peter Marutschke (Emeritus at Dōshisha University)

    Course unit J9 – Private Law III: General Part of Contract Law – Prof Koji Tanaka (Chiba University) / Prof Dr Dr hc Zentaro Kitagawa (Emeritus at Nagoya Meijō-University Nagoya)

    Course unit J10 – Private Law IV: Special Part of Contract Law – Prof Hiroshi Takahashi (Kōbe University) / Prof Koji Tanaka (Chiba University)

    Course unit J11 – Private Law V: Property Law – Prof Katsuyuki Wada (Kyōto University) / Prof Masaaki Yasunaga (Kōbe University) / Prof Dr Hans-Peter Marutschke (Emeritus at Dōshisha University)

    Seminar (10 ECTS)

    The following optional modules can also be completed:

    Elective module 3: Specialisation in Private Law (10 ECTS)​​​​​​​

    Course unit J12 – Family Law – Prof Dr Yu Kamitani / Prof Dr Hans-Peter Marutschke (Emeritus at Dōshisha University)

    Elective module 4: Specialisation in Labour Law (10 ECTS)

    Elective module 5: Specialisation in Commercial and Corporate Law (10 ECTS)

  • The modules mentioned above are thematically and chronologically self-contained. This organisational principle allows you to structure your studies in a clear and flexible manner and thus adapt the duration of your studies, your study times, and, above all, the distribution of your workload to suit your individual needs. All modules of this executive education programme are offered continuously and are tailored to ensure that they can be successfully completed within one semester. However, you are not restricted to semester times and can start and complete a module at any time.

    At the center of the programme are detailed and well-founded materials in German, which have been co-designed by renowned Japanese lawyers. The course materials (PDF files) are supplemented by podcasts, videos, literature references, translations of laws, etc. The files are made available exclusively online. Accessible files and printed course materials are in preparation.

    Interactive learning content such as multiple-choice tests also helps to make the material more dynamic and gives you the opportunity to test yourself. In addition, the department offers individual academic support through video consultations, online lectures and subject-related career counselling. The programme is complemented by regular information on public (online) events on Japanese law.

  • Students enjoy exclusive off-site access to extensive resources on Japanese law:

    • Free access to numerous legal databases of the FernUniversität (including BeckOnline, Juris, CrossAsia, and the Japanese TKC Law Library, as well as the online offerings of numerous specialised publishers such as Springer, Mohr-Siebeck and ​​​​​​many more)
    • Remote loan of 6,000 volumes from our Japanese law library (the most extensive freely available collection on Japanese law in Europe)
    • Access to 17 Japanese-language subscription journals (journal subscription list)

  • We provide you with access to our international network of more than a dozen Japanese law professors – i.e., the authors of our course books – more than 400 alumni, and several guest speakers every year. Our current team of eight under the leadership of Jun-Prof Dr Julius Weitzdörfer LLB Dipl Jur MA (Cantab), who joined the FernUniversität in Hagen from Harvard in 2020 and took over as head of the Department of Japanese Law, is always available to advise and support you.

    Our guest lectures, seminars, symposia, get-togethers, and discussion events, which take place almost every month, provide an opportunity for conversation and networking. As an enrolled student, you can attend either in person at our campus locations (FernUniversität in Hagen Campus Locations) or online via livestream. It is also possible to access the recordings afterwards.

    Since travel restrictions to Japan have been lifted, we are preparing to once again organise law study trips to Japan, just as we have done in the past: These are scheduled to include visits to the National Diet, the Supreme Court, Tōkyō District Court, Fuchū Prison, and Kyōto Police Station. To this end, a faculty partnership with the Dōshisha Law School Kyōto was established in June 2024.

  • This programme is aimed at anyone who has a particular interest in Japanese law, either professionally or personally. Knowledge of the Japanese language is not required. Our students include lawyers and trainee lawyers, legal advisors, company executives, Japanologists, interpreters and translators, and university graduates from other disciplines.

  • The Foundations of Japanese Law executive education programme is open to anyone who

    • has successfully completed a university degree (at a university or university of applied sciences) or
    • has acquired the necessary aptitude through professional training (completed vocational training and employment in a relevant profession – e.g., judicial clerk, foreign language secretary, foreign trade clerk, interpreter, specialist for labour market services, notary clerk, patent attorney assistant, legal assistant, social security clerk, assistant tax consultant, administrative clerk).

    The required professional aptitude is verified at the time of enrolment by the registrar’s office; in cases of doubt, the academic directorate will determine if the applicant’s professional qualifications are sufficient for admission. Information on this can be obtained by email at japanrecht. The examination regulations mentioned below apply.

  • The standard fee for the executive education programme is EUR 2,000 (payment in instalments possible). This includes access to the three basic modules, including taking the final module examinations as well as support and participation in the final seminar for up to five semesters. If you need more time for your studies after the end of five semesters, an additional fee of EUR 150 will be charged for each additional semester.

    For students who have successfully completed seminar 55311 of the Master of Laws (LLM) programme at the FernUniversität in Hagen, the fees for the three basic modules of the continuing education programme are reduced by a quarter.

    If you would also like to take one of the elective modules, a fee of EUR 500 will be charged for each module. You can re-register for an additional semester free of charge for each elective module you have taken. If you have already taken this executive education programme in the past, you can resume your studies at this price by taking one or more elective modules at no additional cost and receive a new certificate.

    Discounts and recognition of academic achievement for alumni will also be available for our upcoming programmes on Korean and Taiwanese law.

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Learning Platform (in German)

28.04.2025