Abstract
This paper tries to explore how we can cope with Japanese Judiciary, for the fair administration of justice, to learn from the experiences of U.S., Canada, and Australia in perceiving, sharing awareness of, and trying to eliminate gender bias in the courts. First it goes through the efforts of Japanese Federation of Bar Associations to improve the gender bias in the courts. Second it takes up the NGO, first to develop programs for judicial education on gender, established by NOWLDEF, NJEP’s achievement in cooperation with the courts, to find and eliminate gender bias in the courts and legal profession in U.S. Then it moves onto Canadian movement to institutionalize judicial education concerning gender for the judges, which were led by feminist lawyers, scholars, and judges. Canada’s NJI and its educational programs for fair administration of justice known as “social context” of is now one of the leading judicial education models. Lastly, it looks to Australian judicial education and bench book as assisting system for the judges with gender fairness in administering justice. Referring to the Australian bench book on “the Equality before the Law: section7 Women,” it reviews gender bias in a recent Japanese employment discrimination case. In conclusion, it points out the conditions shared in three countries to consider viability in the Japanese context.
