Abstract
What are Educational Lawsuits? In Japan, Educational Lawsuits can be defined in many ways. In the broadest sense, they are the lawsuits which are brought on by conflicts in the educational system. In the narrowest sense, they represent the arenas in which important legal principles of education are argued out before the courts. The development of Educational Lawsuits in Japan after the Second World War In the strict sense of the term, Educational Lawsuits in Japan started in the late 1950s, when Japan's educational policies turned rapidly in the direction of disregarding the spirit of the Fundamental Law of Education (FLE). As a typical example, the paper adduces the complete revision of the Law on Local Boards of Education in 1956. This was the cause of many conflicts in Japanese education. Two examples of these conflicts are that over the credit system for teachers and that over the national test for pupils in lower secondary schools all over Japan. The Japan Teachers Union (JTU), fought vehemently against these policies. The Public Prosecutor's Office charged teachers with violation of the Law on Local Government Employees. In rebuttal of this charge, the teachers pleaded that their actions were legal in the light of the Constitution of Japan and the FLE. In ways such as these, the FLE became the subject of legal arguments in the courts, resulting in a gradual deepening of the interpretation of the FLE. The final result was the decision handed down by the grand bench of the Supreme Court of Japan on May 21st 1976.
