In short: Japan divides legal work among several licensed professions — there is no single “lawyer” who does everything. This page explains who does what. If you would rather not work it out alone, our office serves as a single English-speaking entry point and coordinates the professionals your matter needs.

If you are planning to start a business, buy property, or settle an inheritance in Japan, one of the first obstacles is not the law itself — it is figuring out who to ask. In many countries, a single profession called “lawyer” or “attorney” covers most legal work. Japan divides that work among several licensed professions, each with its own exclusive territory defined by law. Hiring the wrong one wastes time; trying to find the right one from outside Japan, in English, is harder still.

Here is what each profession actually does, and when you would need one.

Judicial Scrivener (司法書士 / shihō-shoshi)

Judicial scriveners are the registration specialists of the Japanese legal system. They have exclusive authority to file applications with the Legal Affairs Bureau — the government registry that records who owns every piece of real estate in Japan and the legal existence of every company. Incorporating a company, transferring property, registering an inheritance, removing a mortgage: the legally decisive step in each of these is a registration, and a judicial scrivener is the professional who carries it out. Judicial scriveners also prepare documents for court proceedings, and those with special certification can represent clients in summary court litigation.

Attorney (弁護士 / bengoshi)

Attorneys are the only profession with general authority to represent clients in legal disputes — negotiations, lawsuits, and litigation in all courts. Japanese law (Attorney Act, Article 72) strictly prohibits anyone else from acting as an agent in contested legal matters. If your matter involves a dispute, a claim against another party, or full courtroom representation, an attorney is required.

Administrative Scrivener (行政書士 / gyōsei-shoshi)

Administrative scriveners prepare documents submitted to government agencies and handle a wide range of permits and licenses — business permits, and, for those with an additional certification, immigration and visa applications filed with the Immigration Services Agency. If your matter is an application to an administrative agency rather than a registration or a dispute, this is typically the profession involved.

Licensed Tax Accountant (税理士 / zeirishi)

Tax accountants have exclusive authority over tax representation: preparing and filing tax returns, corresponding with the National Tax Agency, and advising on tax positions. Every company in Japan needs one in practice — corporate tax filings begin immediately after incorporation, and the filing deadlines are unforgiving. For international clients, the practical challenge is finding one who works in English; they exist, but they are a small minority.

Certified Public Accountant (公認会計士 / kōnin-kaikeishi)

CPAs are the audit profession — they certify financial statements, primarily for larger companies subject to statutory audit. Many CPAs also register as tax accountants and provide tax services; for a small or newly formed company, it is usually the tax accountant function you need, whichever title the professional carries.

Social Insurance and Labor Consultant (社会保険労務士 / sharōshi)

Labor consultants handle employment-related government procedures: enrolling a company and its employees in Japan’s social insurance and labor insurance systems, and advising on employment rules. The moment your company hires its first employee — including, in some structures, yourself or a family member — these procedures arise, and this is the profession that handles them.

So Who Do You Contact First?

It depends on what you want to do — and most real matters involve more than one profession.

  • Forming a company is, at its core, a registration — but tax filings follow immediately, and hiring triggers labor procedures.
  • Buying or inheriting property is a registration — but cross-border cases can raise tax questions on both sides.
  • A dispute — with a business partner, a seller, anyone — belongs to an attorney from the start.

This is where international clients most often lose time: not on any single procedure, but on assembling the right team in a system they cannot read, and keeping those professionals coordinated.

Our office works as that entry point. As judicial scriveners, we handle the registrations at the center of company formation, real estate, and inheritance matters — and where a matter extends beyond our license, we identify what is needed and bring in professionals we have worked with, so that you deal with one English-speaking point of contact rather than assembling a team alone. Our case studies show what this looks like in practice: incorporations completed alongside tax advisor introductions, cross-border matters coordinated with attorneys, and employment planning handed to labor consultants at the right moment.