消費者法における国家の役割

抄録

This report aims to describe the role of the state in Japanese consumer law. Prof. Atsushi Omura in his famous book 'Consumer Law,' discusses the role of the state and proposes the concept of 'Consumer support' This concept is the base for developing consumer policy that values the autonomy of consumers and business operators, but at the same time, offers protection to consumers, which is structurally needed. I have attempted to elaborately explain this concept. First I have discussed the problems of the Consumer Basic Act and 'Consumer Citizenship.' which is especially detailed in the 2008 White Paper on National Life. I have pointed out that on the one hand. Japanese consumer policy tends to emphasize the autonomy of consumers and the importance of the role of consumer organizations, but on the other hand, the strong concerns related to emphasizing the autonomy of consumers are discussed in the literature. Additionally. I have also referred to a tendency for focusing more on empirical studies, such as behavioral economics and law. Second, I have analyzed the rationales for the regulations of the state, specifically the regulations of unfair terms in consumer contracts. I have dealt with the following four issues while discussing the reformation of Japanese Civil Code: (1) What is the justification for the regulation of unfair terms in contracts? (2) Are the individually negotiated contractual terms covered by the unfair terms' regulations? (3) Is the assessment of unfair character made of terms that describe the main subject matter of the contract or the quality/price ratio of the goods or services supplied? (4 ) What is the justification for making 'black list' and 'gray list' of unfair terms? In conclusion. I argue that we have to go beyond the simple dichotomy between neo-liberalism and welfarism, and we have to continue to specifically seek the irght balance between autonomy and protection of consumers.