Small claims court - small claims court

Japanese: 少額訴訟 - しょうがくそしょう

In lawsuits handled by summary courts, when the claim amount is small, under 300,000 yen, the procedure under the Civil Procedure Act is such that, in principle, the hearing is completed in one session and a judgment is issued on the same day, in order to minimize the financial burden on the plaintiff.

[Ikuo Ikejiri]

Background of the establishment

Summary courts, which were established after the Second World War with the aim of quickly and simply handling small-scale disputes, were premised on the application of the same litigation procedures as district courts under the old Civil Procedure Code, and as a result, they were like small district courts and were not familiar to citizens. Furthermore, civil cases there were generally dominated by cases involving businesses, such as money lenders and credit companies, in which citizens were sued as defendants.

In light of these circumstances, the new Civil Procedure Code, which was promulgated in 1996 and took effect in January 1998, established a small claims procedure (Part 6, Article 368 onwards). This procedure was introduced to make the justice system more accessible to citizens, and allows for immediate evidence examination at the first hearing, with judgments being handed down on the same day. It is the Japanese version of the Small Claims Courts used in other countries. Until now, the justice system has been criticized for taking too long and being too expensive, so this is intended to be the first step in improving this.

[Ikuo Ikejiri]

Contents of the procedure

Since this is a simplified and quick procedure, it is limited to lawsuits that seek the payment of money where the value of the subject matter of the lawsuit (amount of claim) is 300,000 yen or less. Plaintiffs can choose whether to follow the small claims procedure or the regular procedure for cases that are subject to small claims. Defendants can transfer cases in which the plaintiff has chosen the small claims procedure to the regular procedure until the trial begins.

Small claims cases are heard through oral argument, and unless there are special circumstances, the hearing must be completed on the first oral argument date (the first date on which arguments are actually made). To this end, all arguments and defenses (statements by both the plaintiff and defendant) must be submitted before or on that date.

In small claims cases, there are some procedural restrictions to simplify the proceedings. First, the defendant cannot file a counterclaim. Second, evidence can only be examined if it can be examined immediately. In the case of physical evidence, this means that the evidence has been brought to the court, and in the case of personal evidence (witnesses), the evidence must be present in the court. Third, there are some rules for the examination of witnesses, etc., to relax the formality and formality of normal litigation procedures and make the procedure more flexible and easy to use. These include the elimination of the need for written examination items, the elimination of the need for witness oaths, discretion in the order of examination, and the examination of witnesses via a telephone conference system.

Since the general rule is that all procedures up to the judgment are completed at the first hearing, it is important to inform the parties in advance of the procedure (such as what the procedure is, the evidence documents to be prepared, witnesses to be accompanied, and the defendant's right to apply for a transfer to a regular lawsuit). Judicial commissioners are often present at the hearing, and the matter may be resolved immediately by settlement. In the case of a judgment, the general rule is a written judgment, and the content of the judgment can take into account the specific circumstances of the parties and stipulate a grace period for payment within three years or installment payment. Generally, a judgment in favor of a claim is a lump-sum judgment unless there is a petition from the plaintiff. However, in cases where the defendant does not have sufficient financial resources, it is more likely that a satisfactory result will be obtained for the plaintiff by relying on the debtor's voluntary efforts to pay rather than by forced execution. It is more likely that the defendant will participate in the discussion and decide on the payment method, which will ultimately create an incentive for voluntary performance and result in an effective judgment. Therefore, a provision was established that when the court issues a judgment granting all or part of a claim, it may, taking into consideration the defendant's financial resources and other circumstances and deeming it particularly necessary, grant a grace period for payment of the granted amount or provide for installment payment for a period not exceeding three years from the date of rendering of the judgment.

[Ikuo Ikejiri]

Appeal

Appeals are only allowed against the summary court that handed down the ruling. Appeals against rulings are not permitted, only objections are allowed, and the same summary court will handle the appeal hearing. In principle, the ruling of the appeal hearing is final, and only special appeals are possible.

In order to prevent financial institutions from dominating the procedure, the number of times each party can use the procedure is limited to 10 times per year. This is intended to prevent small claims procedures from being monopolized by specific parties, such as consumer finance companies and credit companies, making it difficult for the general public to use.

[Ikuo Ikejiri]

[Reference items] | Summary court | Litigation | Civil procedure law

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

簡易裁判所で扱う訴訟のなかで、請求額が30万円以下の少額の場合、できるだけ経済的負担がかからないよう、原則として1回で審理を終了し即日判決を出せるようにした民事訴訟法の手続。

［池尻郁夫］

設立の背景

第二次世界大戦後、小規模紛争の簡易・迅速な処理を目的の一つとして創設された簡易裁判所は、旧民事訴訟法のもとでは、基本的には地方裁判所と同一の訴訟手続が適用されることが前提とされており、その結果、小型の地方裁判所の様相を呈し市民に身近な裁判所となりえなかった。また、一般にそこでの民事事件は、貸金業者や信販業者などから市民が被告として訴えられる業者事件により占拠されていた。

　そこで、このような事情を背景として、1996年（平成8）に公布され、98年1月より施行された新民事訴訟法においては、少額訴訟手続が新設された（第6編368条以下）。この手続は、司法を市民に利用しやすいものにするために導入された手続で、第1回期日に即時証拠調べをし、判決も同日に言渡しをすることになっている。諸外国で行われている少額裁判所Small Claims Courtの日本版である。これまで司法に対し、時間がかかりすぎるとか費用がかかりすぎるという批判が多かったが、その改善の第一歩としようとするものである。

［池尻郁夫］

手続の内容

簡易迅速な手続で行うため、この手続を利用できるのは、訴訟の目的の価額（訴額）が30万円以下の金銭の支払請求を目的とする訴えに限られる。原告は、少額訴訟の対象になる事件について、少額訴訟手続によるか通常の手続によるかを選択することができる。被告は、審理が開始されるまでの間、原告が少額訴訟手続を選択した事件を通常の手続に移行させることができる。

　少額訴訟の審理は口頭弁論で行われ、特別の事情がある場合を除いて、最初にすべき口頭弁論の期日（現実に弁論がなされる最初の期日）に審理を完了しなければならない。このために、その期日前またはその期日に、すべての攻撃防御方法（原告、被告双方の陳述）を提出しなければならない。

　少額訴訟では、審理の簡易化のためにいくつかの手続的制約がある。第一に、被告は反訴を提起することができない。第二に、証拠調べは即時に取り調べることができる証拠に限り行うことができる。即時に取り調べることができるとは、物的証拠の場合は、法廷に持ち込まれているもの、人的証拠（証人）の場合は法廷に在席しているもの、をいう。第三に、証人等の尋問についても、通常の訴訟手続における方式性や形式性を緩和し柔軟で利用しやすい手続とするための規定を、いくつか設けている。すなわち、尋問事項書の不要化、証人宣誓の不要化、尋問順序の裁量化、電話会議システムによる証人尋問などがそれである。

　第1回期日で判決までのすべての手続を行うことが原則になっているので、当事者に対する手続の事前教示（どのような手続なのか、用意する証拠書類、同行してもらう証人、被告の通常訴訟移行の申立権など）が重要となる。期日には司法委員も立ち会うことが多く、ただちに和解で解決することもある。判決になる場合も、調書判決を原則とし、判決内容も当事者の具体的事情を考慮して3年以内の支払期限猶予または分割払いを定めることができる。一般に請求認容判決は、とくに原告の申立てがない以上一括払判決が原則である。しかし、被告に十分な資力がない場合などには、強制執行によるのではなく、債務者の自発的な支払努力に依拠するほうが、原告にとっても満足な結果が得られる可能性が高い。被告も議論に参加して支払方法などを定めたほうが、結果的にみて任意履行の誘因を生み出しやすく、実効的な判決となりうる。そこで、裁判所は、請求の全部または一部を認容する判決をする場合には、被告の資力やそのほかの事情を考慮してとくに必要があると認めるときは、判決の言渡しの日から3年を超えない範囲内で認容額の支払いの猶予もしくは分割弁済の定めをすることができる旨の規定が置かれた。

［池尻郁夫］