Lord Reed visits the Supreme Court of Japan
8 December 2023
Last week, Lord Reed was invited to Tokyo as a guest of the Supreme Court of Japan. The visit followed two virtual exchanges between the courts as well as the visit of Justice Nagamine to the UK in October 2023.
Lord Reed began the week by meeting with Chief Justice Tokura. The two Justices spoke on the constitutional role of a supreme court and the increasing role of technology in courts.
Over the next several days Lord Reed took part in a variety of activities including attending a lecture at the University of Tokyo School of Law, observing hearings at the Intellectual Property High Court and the Tokyo District Court, and taking part in discussions with senior figures in legal community.
Lord Reed also gave a lecture at the Supreme Court of Japan on the subject of Oral Hearings in the United Kingdom: Past, Present and Future. The lecture was followed by a one-hour Q&A moderated by Judge Yao, President of the Legal Training and Research Institute of Japan. The full text of Lord Reed's speech is available on our website.
During his visit Lord Reed was also granted an audience with Emperor Naruhito. During their meeting, Lord Reed and His Majesty discussed his visit as well as the Emperor's time studying at Oxford. The audience received wide coverage in Japanese media, an example of which can be viewed here.
Lord Reed said of the visit:
"My visit to Japan as the guest of the Chief Justice was an invaluable opportunity to strengthen the relationship between our judiciaries and our countries. It was a valuable opportunity to share views and expertise on common issues affecting the law. I was very honoured to meet the Emperor. I am grateful to all those who were involved in supporting my visit, and those who took part in my busy programme of meetings and other activities.""
Chief Justice Tokura said:
"Lord Reed's visit to Japan was an opportunity of great significance to share common understanding of the role of judiciaries to support the 'rule of law' and other points, and to further develop the relations of the judiciaries of the two countries. Many young judges and other court officials who will form the backbone of the Japanese courts were impressed and encouraged, hearing the lecture by Lord Reed. I would like to express my sincere thanks to Lord Reed for his visit to Japan, despite his busy schedule."
We look forward to future opportunities to engage with our Japanese counterparts and strengthen the ties between our two judiciaries.