NCJ Number
129228
Journal
Law and Contemporary Problems Volume: 53 Issue: 1 and 2 Dated: special issue (Winter/Spring 1990) Pages: 181-199
Date Published
1990
Length
19 pages
Annotation
Decisions of the Japanese Supreme Court recognize that some governmental questions lie within the discretion of the Diet or the discretion of other political branches of government.
Abstract
The Japanese Supreme Court has recognized that the Diet has broad discretionary power to enact legislation concerning crime and punishment, family relation, elections, social welfare, the status of public employees, and economic regulations. The article first introduces recent cases in which the Japanese Supreme Court has applied the legislative discretion test and then reviews the common features of these cases. A discussion of the constitutional limitations of this legislative discretion test and suggestions on the appropriate relationship between the Diet and the Court conclude the article. The cases presented cover the past 40 years and include a case on illegitimacy, a patricide case, a salaried workers' income tax case, cases on election law, a welfare rights case, and political question cases. 70 notes