ANJeL is a network of over 350 scholars, practitioners, policy-makers, senior students and others interested in Japanese law from Australia, Japan, and the rest of the world. ANJeL welcomes applications for membership.
ANJeL is managed by its co-Directors, who are assisted by an Executive Coordinator and a diverse Advisory Board.
ANJeL offers a research visitor scheme for scholars and jurists. ANJeL’s directors welcome applications at any time.
Two co-directors share responsibility for the research, teaching and other activities of ANJeL: Luke Nottage (USyd) and Heather Roberts (ANU)
Professor Luke Nottage
Professor Luke Nottage (BCA, LLB, PhD VUW, LLM Kyoto) specialises in arbitration, contract law and consumer product safety law, with a particular interest in Japan and the Asia-Pacific. He is Professor of Comparative and Transnational Business Law at Sydney Law School, founding Co-Director of the Australian Network for Japanese Law and Associate Director of the Centre for Asian and Pacific Law at the University of Sydney (CAPLUS). Luke’s publications include Product Safety and Liability Law in Japan (Routledge, 2004), Corporate Governance in the 21st Century: Japan’s Gradual Transformation (Elgar, 2008), Asia-Pacific Disaster Management (Springer, 2014), International Investment Treaties and Arbitration Across Asia (Brill, 2018) and Contract Law in Japan (Wolters Kluwer, 2019). He has or had executive roles in the Australia-Japan Society (NSW), the Law Council of Australia’s International Law Section, the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration, and the Australasian Forum for International Arbitration. Luke has also consulted for law firms world-wide, ASEAN, the EC, the OECD, the UNDP and the Japanese government, and is Special Counsel with Williams Trade Law. Engagement with media and parliamentary inquries, and other news, can be found on the Japanese Law and the Asia-Pacific blog.
Assoc Professor Heather Roberts
Dr Heather Roberts is an Associate Professor at the ANU Law School at the Australian National University, teaching in constitutional law, property law, and legal history. After graduating with her honours degrees in Asian Studies/Law at ANU, she worked as a solicitor at Freehills, practicing in property law and government contracting, and in 2018 co-authored the 4th edition of Property Law in New South Wales (LexisNexis). Her current research focuses on the intersections between legal reasoning and judicial biography, and in 2017 she was awarded a Discovery Early Career Researcher Award for the project titled The Ideal Judge exploring the changing perceptions of judges and judging in Australia as recorded through courts’ ceremonial archives.
Inma Conde
Inma Conde is an Australian lawyer practising in international law and a PhD Candidate at Sydney Law School. As Executive Co-ordinator of the Australian Network for Japanese Law (ANJeL), she fosters cross-cultural legal collaboration between Australia, Japan, and the Asia-Pacific.
With a background in civil and common law, Inma has published on international trade law, comparative law and legal harmonisation. Her achievements include the RTP Scholarship, the WA Cooke, Jane Cooke, and Alfred Godfrey Scholarship, and a research grant from the Forbes Society for Australian Legal History. Fluent in four languages, Inma is committed to building networks and advancing global legal dialogue.
Jerry To
Jerry To is a graduate of the University of Sydney Law School and currently serves as a Research Assistant at 5 Wentworth Chambers. His areas of expertise span the full spectrum of commercial law, with a particular focus on insolvency and competition law.
Dr Ana Ubilava
Ana Ubilava is a part-time academic at the University of Sydney Law School teaching Public International Law. Her area of research is investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) with a focus on investor-state mediation. Ana holds a PhD degree in law from the University of Sydney (Australia), LLM in Business and Commercial Law from the University of Manchester (UK) and LLB from the Tbilisi State University (Georgia). Before moving to Australia, Ana worked at the Tbilisi City Hall of Georgia as a lawyer and subsequently as the Deputy Mayor’s Chief of Staff.
Melanie Trezise
Melanie Trezise is a PhD candidate in Law at the University of Sydney, investigating issues around legal personality for artificial intelligence. She also works as an editor, translator and researcher. Led by curiosity along the scenic routes, she has previously spent some time as a commercial lawyer in Tokyo, developed policy and organisational compliance solutions for local government, and has moonlighted as a film extra. She obtained her Bachelor of Arts (Asian Studies) and Law (Hons I) at the University of Sydney and completed her Masters of Law (Sociology of Law) at Kyoto University, Japan. She has been connected with ANJeL in various capacities since its inception.
ANJeL consults with its Advisory Board:
Leon Wolff
Leon Wolff is Professor of Global Business Law at the Graduate School of Law, Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo, Japan. Leon is a three-time graduate of the University of Queensland with first class honours and university medals in Arts and Law (BA and LLB) and a Master of Arts in Japanese Interpreting and Translation (MAJIT). He also completed a Master of Laws in Asian and Comparative Law at the University of Washington as a Fulbright Scholar, and a Master of Education (Higher Education) at the University of Sydney. He is a NAATI-accredited interpreter and translator, a NMAS-accredited Mediator, a lawyer admitted in the Supreme Court of New South Wales, and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA). Leon’s research focuses on Japanese law and society, with publications on corporate governance, employment rights, legal system reform and litigiousness in Japan. Leon is a co-founder and a former director of the Australian Network for Japanese Law (ANJeL).
Professor Kent Anderson
Professor Kent Anderson is an international lawyer who specialises in comparing Asian legal systems. In 2021 he was appointed to the role of Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Global at the University of Newcastle. He has an eclectic background, having completed tertiary studies in US, Japan, and the UK in Law, Politics, Economics and Asian Studies. He also worked as a marketing manager with a US regional airline in Alaska and as a commercial lawyer in Hawaii. From 2014-18, Professor Anderson was Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Engagement) at the University of Western Australia and prior to that held the role of Pro Vice-Chancellor (International) at the University of Adelaide. He has also worked in the higher education sector at ANU where he was the Foundation Director of the School of Culture, History and Language and as an Associate Professor in Law at Hokkaido University. Prof Anderson is a founding Co-Director (and now Advisory Board member) of ANJeL. He is on the New Colombo Plan Advisory Board, the Board of Canberra Grammar School, and a variety of academic and community boards including the Languages and Cultures Network for Australian Universities (LCNAU). He believes in the ABC of life: brewing his own Ales, listening to the Blues and playing sport with his Child. Having grown up in Alaska, he said WA feels familiar, with an important Indigenous community, big open spaces, vibrant local arts scene and a resource-driven economy. And having spent 20 years in Alaska where temperatures dive to -45C, he is enjoying thawing out in Perth’s beautiful sunshine.
Professor Harald Baum
Professor Dr Harald Baum was formerly a Senior Research Fellow and Head of the Japan Department at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law, Hamburg, Germany; Priv.Doz., University of Hamburg; Research Associate, European Corporate Governance Institute, Brussels, Belgium; Founding and Executive Editor: Zeitschrift für Japanisches Recht / Journal of Japanese Law (ZJapanR, which ANJeL now collaborates in); and Vice-president, German-Japanese Association of Jurists (an ANJeL affiliate). Dr Baum is an expert in comparative commercial law, with numerous publications on business law, corporate governance, takeovers, and capital markets regulation in Germany, the EU, Japan, and the USA, comparative law, and private international law.
Professor Masako Kamiya 紙谷 雅子
Masako Kamiya, a graduate of Tokyo University, is Professor of Law at Gakushuin University, specialising in Anglo-Commonwealth and American constitutional law. She also teaches Legal Informatics and American Law at the new Law School at Gakushuin University.
Akira Kawamura 川村 明
Akira Kawamura is a partner at Anderson Mori & Tomotsune, one of Tokyo’s largest law firms, and has an extensive general corporate and litigation practice with numerous large multinational domestic and foreign clients. He specializes in corporate, M&A, intellectual property, international trade, entertainment, publication, energy and real property law. He is a corporate auditor [kansayaku] and board member [torishimariyaku] of a number of Japanese companies, and is also an experienced arbitrator/mediator. He is also an influential member of the Japanese Bar, having served as Executive Vice President of the Dai-ni Tokyo Bar Association, Executive Director of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations (Nichibenren) and Chairman of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations’ Foreign Lawyers and International Legal Practice Committee. He was a Visiting Professor from 2001-2003 at Kyoto University’s Faculty of Law, where he graduated with an LLB in 1965. Akira Kawamura also obtained a LLM from the University of Sydney in 1979, and trained at a law firm in Australia. His publications (as editor-in-chief/author) include Australia Law and Business (1979) and Law and Business in Japan (new ed, 2000).
Professor Carolyn Stevens
Professor Carolyn Stevens is the Director of the Japanese Studies Centre at Monash University and is a Principal Fellow at the Asian Law Centre at the University of Melbourne. Originally trained as an anthropologist, over the last twenty years she has published books and articles on Japanese culture and society including a focus on social problems and Japanese law, such as social welfare, citizenship and statelessness, and most recently disability welfare and policy. She is involved with teaching the Asian Studies and International Studies programs as well as the Japanese language program at Monash University. She is also currently the Editor in Chief of the interdisciplinary journal Japanese Studies. Recent publications include Disability in Japan (2013) and Internationalising Japan (2014, co-edited with J. Breaden and S. Steele).
Professor Veronica Taylor
Veronica L. Taylor is Professor of Law and Regulation at the Australian National University (ANU), where she also directs the ANU Japan Institute. Her work focusses on regulatory justice, rule of law, and corporate governance issues in Japan and Asia. She is currently a Visiting Professor at the University of Tokyo where she teaches South East Asian Business Law. She teaches negotiation and arbitration and coaches the national Team Australia for Japan’s Intercollegiate Negotiation and Arbitration Competition, held annually in Tokyo: http://www.negocom.jp/eng/
Professor Taylor serves on the Board of the Australia-Japan Foundation (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade), the Board of the Foundation for Australia-Japan Studies and the Executive of the Australia-Japan Business Cooperation Committee. She was previously Dean of the ANU College of Asia and the Pacific.
She received the Japanese Foreign Minister’s Citation in 2017.
Ian Williams
Ian Williams is a professional director and provides strategic advice to Japanese and Australian companies on bilateral and regional operations. He was a partner at global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills, advising Japanese corporations on mergers & acquisitions and joint ventures in the Australian mining, industrial, infrastructure and agri-business sectors. He also previously worked with Kobe Steel in Japan for 5 years. He holds bachelor degrees in law and economics from the University of Sydney and a post-graduate diploma in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from the University of Oxford. Ian is Vice-President of the Australia Japan Business Cooperation Committee and a non-executive director of New Hope Corporation (ASX:NHC). Ian represented both Australia and Japan in rugby union.
Malcolm Smith
Malcolm Smith was the Dean of Comparative Asian Law in Australia. Educated at University of Melbourne and Harvard, he went on to establish the Asian Law Centres at both University of British Columbia and University of Melbourne, where he was Foundation Professor of Asian Law. In 2004, he joined Chuo University Law School as Professor of Asian Law. Mal was a founding Advisor to ANJeL and one of its most dedicated supporters. Malcolm Smith passed away in July 2006.
ANJeL welcomes jurists and scholars from Australia, Japan and the rest of the world to join ANJeL. The primary benefit of joining ANJeL is that you will be kept informed of events and opportunities organised by ANJeL, including conferences, continuing legal education seminars, specialist courses, research visitorships and student support activities. More importantly, as a ‘network’ of scholars, ANJeL invites you to approach us about potential collaborations, whether in teaching, research or community engagement. For example:
ANJeL is working with law firms in Japan and Australia to support student research and co-develop online research resources in Japanese law;
ANJeL directors are teaching specialist courses at leading law schools in Japan; and
ANJeL is collaborating with Japanese universities to co-sponsor research conferences.
ANJeL welcomes applications for membership, associateship, affiliation or project partnership with ANJeL:
ANJeL members are members of faculty at ANU, USyd actively engaged in, or with an interest in, the Japanese legal system;
ANJeL associates are scholars, jurists or government officials with an active interest in Japanese law or Australian-Japanese comparative law. Associates may be based in Australia, Japan or anywhere else in the world.
ANJeL affiliates are bodies, whether incorporated or unincorporated, who make a significant contribution to ANJeL activities. Law firms are especially encouraged to apply for affiliation.
ANJeL project partners are bodies with aims that are consistent with ANJeL’s objectives, including professional networking organisations for lawyers working in Japan.
To join, simply send us an email with the following information:
your name (or the name of your organisation);
a secondary (non-institutional) email address; and
a brief descriptive statement about yourself or your organisation, including research interests and/or areas of practice.
ANJeL has received overwhelming support from scholars, practitioners and law firms in Australia, Japan and around the world. Please read about some of our visiting professionals and visiting academics.
The directors thank all supporters for their warm and enthusiastic support of ANJeL.
ANJeL affiliates make the most significant and regular contributions to ANJeL’s objectives.
The Asian Law Centre (ALC) of the University of Melbourne — the oldest centre for the study of Asian legal systems in the Southern Hemisphere — joined ANJeL as Inaugural Affiliate in May 2004. The affiliation builds on cross-promotion and joint-sponsoring synergies between ANJeL and ALC.
The German-Japanese Association of Jurists (Deutsch-Japanische Juristenvereinigung) was welcomed as ANJeL’s second affiliate in October 2004. Founded in 1988, it has approximately 700 members — individuals, firms, and organisations like ANJeL — in Germany, Japan and world-wide. ANJeL collaborates in promoting the multi-lingual Zeitschrift für Japanisches Recht / Journal of Japanese Law, with two co-directors on the editorial board. Mutual membership is encouraged, particularly to obtain hard copies of the journal, and collaboration is also envisaged relating to symposiums particularly in Japan.
ANJeL welcomes the Faculty of Law at the University of New South Wales, which was a founding institution of ANJeL in 2003, in the new capacity of ANJeL’s third Affiliate. The Faculty retains many links with Japan, in particular through its generous support of ANJeL’s Judges in Residence program.
ANJeL welcomes applications from researchers from Japan and elsewhere interested in visiting Australia to pursue their research. ANJeL will provide the researcher with access to law libraries and other research facilities at ANU and USyd; and facilitate meetings with experts in the researcher’s area of interest. The level of funding support will be based on economic need and the nature of the proposed research program.
To apply, email ANJeLinfo@gmail.com with the following information:
your name and affiliation;
preferred dates to visit Australia;
outline of your research project or research goals;
your curriculum vitae;
any other funding sources.
For further information contact any of the Directors.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2025
PhD Candidate, Virginia Lemme (University of Siena)
Virginia Lemme will be a Visiting Doctoral Student in May 2025, based at UNSW and the University of Sydney. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Comparative and International Law at the University of Siena. Her research focuses on constitutional and judicial systems, with particular emphasis on Japanese constitutional law and the rights of marginalized communities, including sexual minorities. Virginia is also completing her legal traineeship in Rome.
An activist dedicated to advancing gender equality and human rights, she is an active member of Rete per la Parità, where she collaborates to strengthen university relations and promote women’s rights through legal and academic advocacy. Additionally, Virginia is affiliated with the Italian-Japanese Association for Comparative Law (AIGDC) and has contributed to various organizations promoting human rights, including AIDOS and Obiettivo5. Her work has been published in journals such as Diritticomparati and DPCEonline, where she addresses critical issues like the protection of women’s rights under EU law and recent Japanese Supreme Court rulings on transgender rights.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2024
Dr Masayuki Tamaruya
Masayuki Tamaruya is a Professor of Law at the University of Tokyo, teaching comparative law and trust law. He will visit USydney and ANJeL affiliate UNSW in March 2024. His main research areas include trusts and estates, nonprofit organizations, civil procedure and legal history. Masa’s publications include, ‘Charity Governance in Japan: Past Reforms and Current Debates,’ in Langford (ed) Governance and Regulation of Charities (Elgar 2023); ‘Fiduciary Law and Japanese Nonprofits: A Historical and Comparative Synthesis’ in Laby & Russell (eds), Fiduciary Obligations in Business (CUP 2021); ‘Lay Judge’ in Max Planck Encyclopedia of Comparative Constitutional Law (OUP 2021); ‘Fiduciary Principles in Japanese Law’ (with J Mark Ramseyer) in Criddle et al (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Fiduciary Law (OUP 2019), ‘Japanese Law and the Global Diffusion of Trust and Fiduciary Law’ Iowa Law Review Vol 103 (2018), as well as ‘Accessory Liability and Tracing: Modern Adaptations of Japanese Trust Law’ in Asia-Pacific Trusts Law Vol 2 (2022), and ‘The Transformation of Japanese Trust Law and Practice: Historical Contexts and Future Challenges’ in Asia-Pacific Trusts Law Vol 1 (2021). His publications in Japanese include two monographs, American Law from the Trial Court Perspective (University of Tokyo Publishing 2006); and Civil Procedure: An Anglo-American Comparison (University of Tokyo Publishing 2016). He received his Bachelor of Laws from the University of Tokyo, LL.M. from New York University, and Diploma in Legal Studies from Cambridge University. Previously, he taught at Rikkyo University, and was a visiting scholar to Harvard Law School, Harvard Yenching Institute, the Faculty of Law and Magdalene College, Cambridge University, and the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2023
Dr Luca Siliquini-Cinelli
Dr Luca Siliquini-Cinelli is a Reader in Law at the School of Law and Politics, Cardiff University. A no-longer practising Barrister (Italy Bar), Luca is a legal comparatist and philosopher specialising in comparative contract law, comparative legal traditions, and continental philosophy and political theory. Luca will be visiting the College of Law, Australian National University, from 13 July to 2 August 2023. He will undertake research for his new monograph. The book offers a philosophical and comparative contextualisation of the origins and development of legal education and practice in the Western Legal Tradition in light of current developments in both fields. Further information on Luca's research interests, work, and activities may be found at https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/people/view/2660602-
Kimihiro Hino
Kimihiro Hino is an Associate Professor at the Department of Urban Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering of the University of Tokyo. His research interests include Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED), Housing, and Urban Planning. He currently serves as a Building Security Adviser for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, Crime Prevention Research Advisor for Fukuoka Prefectural Police, and Crime Prevention Special Adviser for Adachi City, Tokyo. During his visit to the University of Sydney Law School, he will carry out research on the integration of active planning (planning to promote physical activity) with Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) through case studies in NSW.
Nobumichi Teramura
Dr Nobumichi (Nobu) Teramura is Assistant Professor at the Institute of Asian Studies, University of Brunei Darussalam (UBD) and Affiliate at the University of Sydney Law School Centre for Asian and Pacific Law (CAPLUS) and ANJeL-in-ASEAN Convenor. Dr Teramura specialises in business law, with a particular interest in arbitration, private international law, contract law and Asian law. During his visit to Sydney Law School, he will work with Professor Luke Nottage on a research project on corruption and illegality in Asian ISDS. He will also deliver a presentation on the history of arbitration in Japan at the Comparative History of Arbitration seminar held by ANJeL and CAPLUS.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2022
Shohei Eto
Shohei Eto is an Associate Professor of Law at Hitotsubashi National University, Tokyo. He specializes in constitutional law, legal philosophy, and legal history. After graduating from the University of Tokyo Law School in 2008 with Magna cum laude honours, he worked as an Associate Attorney at Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu, practicing in corporate law and M&A. He was a Fulbright Scholar in 2011 and received LL.M at Columbia Law School in 2012. His current research focuses on the development of Australian constitutionalism in comparison with Japanese constitutionalism. During his visit to the University of Sydney Law School, he will work closely with Dr. Jeffrey Gordon on the current research topic.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2020
Professor Miho Aoi
Professor Aoi is a Professor of Constitutional Law at Gakushuin University School of Law, Tokyo. Her major fields of research are Constitutional Litigation in Japan and Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution which renounces war. She is keenly interested in how constitutional provision plays-out in daily life, and its influence over political and legal mechanisms. Her research aim at the ANU College of law is on the ACT's Human Rights Act, especially on how it has been utilized in the judicial process.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2019
Professor James Claxton
Prof Claxton teaches and researches in the fields of international investment law, business and human rights, and international dispute settlement. Previously, he was legal counsel at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in Washington and attorney in the international arbitration practices of law firms in Paris. Prof Claxton regularly advises dispute resolution institutions in Asia and is a member of various working groups devoted to improving international dispute resolution systems. Prof Claxton presented a paper on the 15 November symposium Challenges and Opportunities for Asia-Pacific International Commercial Arbitration.
Professor Tetsuro Hiranon
Dr Tetsuro Hirano is a Professor at the Ritsumeikan University Law School teaching Civil Procedure Law, Conservation Law, Civil Law Practice Comprehensive Practice, Judicial System Theory, and Bioethics and Law. Professor Hirano will be hosted by the University of Sydney. During his visit to the University of Sydney Law School in July-August 2019, Prof Hirano's main focus will be on medical ADR and medical safety in Australia.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2018
Professor Daniel H Foote
Professor Daniel H Foote was the ANJeL visiting professor for 2018. Prof Foote is Professor of Law at the University of Tokyo and the Dan Fenno Henderson Professor Emeritus and Senior Advisor to the Asian Law Center at the University of Washington. Professor Foote is a leading scholar in Japanese law.
Professor Rob Leflar
Professor Rob Leflar visited the Australian Health Law Research Centre at QUT in early December on top of speaking at ALSA2018 and visiting the University of Melbourne. Professor Leflar is Professor of Law at the University of Arkansas, with teaching and research focus on torts, health law, and related fields.
Professor Beatrice Jazulot
Professor Beatrice Jazulot from Sciences-Po and ENS Lyon, expert in Japanese contract law and also researching aspects of Southeast Asian land law, will be attending the biannual Asian Studies Association of Australia conference hosted by the University of Sydney in early July. Prof Jazulot will present a paper with Luke Nottage at the ASAA conference on the role and influence of comparative law in and for Japan.
Assoc Professor Marc Dernauer
Marc Dernauer is an Associate Professor at the faculty of law at Chūō University in Tōkyō, teaching civil law, intellectual property law, German law, and comparative law. In his research, he is in particular interested in the various influences on Japanese private law, in particular in the field of contract law, from continental European and Anglo-American legal traditions alike. At present, he studies the different structures of contract regulation in various countries and compares them with Japanese law.
Professor Towa Niimura
Towa Niimura is a professor at Seikei University Law School in Tokyo and teaches constitutional law. Her current academic interests are effective meaning of democracy, citizenship, legal function of state and society, central/de-central system of the state and administrative regulation. Supported by a Humboldt Research Fellowship as a visiting professor she researched public law at Heidelberg University and Munich University and gave lectures at several universities in Germany.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2017
Professor Shinichi Nemoto
Shinichi Nemoto is a professor at Meiji University School of Law in Tokyo. He visited the University of Sydney in May-July 2017 to research Australian takeover law, with the focus on frustrating action and squeeze-out in takeovers.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2016
Professor Akira Kurata
Akira Kurata is a Professor at he Ritsumeikan University School of law. He visited the University of Sydney and the Australian National University to research Australian election system, particularly Australian compulsory voting tradition, from September 2016 to September 2017.
Assoc Professor Yusuke Bando
Yusuke Bando is an Associate Professor at Otaru University of Commerce, Department of Law. He investigated the Citizenship Test introduced by the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 (Cth), and in particular, how to integrate naturalisation applicants (future Australians) into the community.
Professor Craig Martin
Craig Martin is a Professor at Washburn University School of Law. He came to Sydney to present at the symposium with UNSW, "Collective Self‐defence Symposium", on revisions to Article 9 of Japan’s Constitution.
ANJeL Visiting Academics for 2015
Professor Kichimoto Asaka
Kichimoto Asaka is a Professor at the University of Tokyo Law Faculty. At USyd from July to September 2015, Professor Asaka investigated the independent development of Australian Law and class actions in Australia.
ANJeL facilitates a variety of legal professionals visiting Australia. For example, ANJeL has hosted professionals from the Japanese Ministry of Justice (Prosecutors’ Office), National Police Agency, and private law firms. In addition, ANJeL, along with its affiliate University of Melbourne’s Asian Law Centre, has a commitment to hosting Japanese judges and court clerks through the Supreme Court of Japan research abroad program. The Scheme is overseen by the Director of ANJeL’s Judges-in-Residence Program Committee and ANJeL’s co-Directors.
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2024
Sendai District Court Judge Hirofumi HIGASHI has adjudicated mostly civil cases since 2021, after completing studies at Osaka University and judicial training. Based at the University of Sydney, he will mostly compare the use of IT and AI in courts, efficient management of complex civil cases (eg construction and medical malpractice disputes), and international cases in Australian courts.
SATO Yuta, a court official from the Supreme Court of Japan, will be based at ANU Law from June 2024. His research will examine the digitisation of court proceedings in Australian courts.
Yoshiaki YAMAGUCHI is a Family Court Probation Officer in Japan. He will be a Visiting Research Scholar at Melbourne Law School for one year from June 2024. He has over a decade of experience across Japanese family courts and is currently attached to the Osaka Family Court.
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2023
Kohei SASAKI is an Assistant Judge at the Yamagata District Court, Japan dealing with civil law cases. Judge Sasaki will be visiting the University of Sydney to compare especially (1) the role that judges should play in arranging settlements in civil litigation from the perspective of negotiation studies, (2) how issues should be sorted out and examined, to enable early resolution of civil lawsuits, and (3) the issue of discrimination against minorities and their rights.
Sakiyama TORU is a Court Clerk of the Onomichi Branch of the Hiroshima Family Court. He will be studying the role of digital technologies in Australian courts, and particularly the impact on people with disabilities.
Nozomu OKADA is a Court Official at the Osaka District Court dealing with public relations. Mr. Okada will be visiting the University of Melbourne to research the adult guardianship system in Australia.
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2022
Saori MIYAZAKI (June 2022 - June 2023) previously a judge of Takasaki Branch of Maebashi District Court, Maebashi Family Court and Takasaki Summary Court, hearing mainly civil cases, is visiting the University of Sydney Law School to research Australian Civil Procedure, visitation rights in family law and criminal jury trials.
Chihiro MORITA (June 2022 - June 2023) previously a judge of Naha District Court hearing mainly criminal cases, is visiting the University of Melbourne to research the judicial system and procedures, both civil and criminal, in Australia.
Hirofumi SHIMIZU (June 2022 - June 2023) a Court official of Financial Bureau of the General Secretariat of the Supreme Court of Japan and formerly Court Clerk of the Tokyo District Court handling civil cases, is visiting the Australian National University to examine the use of IT by Australian courts in civil litigation proceedings.
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2021
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2019
Judge Motohiro UEKUSA (June 2019 - June 2020) is a judge of Tsuchiura Branch of Mito District Court of Japan hearing civil cases. Judge UEKUSA will be visiting the University of Sydney Law School to research Australian Civil Procedure.
Judge Maiko YUKAWA (August 2019 – August 2020) is a judge of Osaka District Court hearing administrative dispute cases. Judge YUKAWA will be visiting the Melbourne Law School to research administrative laws and procedure in Australia.
Ms Manami TAKEKOSHI (June 2019-June 2020) is a mediation officer of the Osaka Family Court. During her visit at ANU Law school Ms TAKEKOSHI will be researching the adoption of therapeutic jurisprudence in family cases and the support systems in Australia which assist long-term resolution of family disputes.
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2018
Judge Yuriko Yamamoto (June 2018 - June 2019) is a judge of Maebashi District Court in Japan hearing criminal cases. Judge Ito will be visiting the University of Sydney Law School to research criminal justice system and its implications on the community as well as rehabilitation programs for known offenders.
Judge Hayato Aoki (June 2018 – May 2019) is a judge of the Okayama District Court specializing in criminal suits. During his stay at the Melbourne Law School, he will be researching on the legal systems of Australia with regard to criminal cases (in particular: bail system, criminal trials by jury, and the judgement process of sentencing).
Judicial Officer Rie O (June 2018 - June 2019) a Court Clerk, from the Third Division of Tokyo Family Court, will be visiting the Australian National University.
Dai Murakami (March - August 2018) is a prosecutor from the Public Prosecutor Office in Japan. During his stay at the Australian National University. Mr Murakami will be researching the Witness Protection Program in Australia.
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2017
Judge Yosuke Fujita (June 2017 – June 2018) during his stay at the University of Sydney Law school will be researching the structure and mechanisms of the criminal justice system in Australia, in particular the jury system, juvenile justice and the ERISP system.
Judge Yuri Takemura (June 2017 – June 2018) during her stay at Melbourne Law school will be comparing the legal systems of Australia and Japan with regard to civil cases, in particular, measures for appropriate judgements which require concurrent evidence and the system of settlement.
Family Court Investigating Officer Hiroaki Yoshida (June 2016 – May 2017) during his stay at the ANU College of Law is researching the family law system and the youth justice system in Australia, in particular the family dispute resolution system, the parenting arrangement for high conflict cases and the restorative justice system.
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2016
Judge Hiroaki Yoshida (June 2016 – May 2017) during his stay at the ANU College of Law will be researching how to support hi‐conflict divorce cases and how to develop the expert’s skills and knowledge to deal with such cases in Australia.
Judge Yoshihiro Baba (June 2016 – May 2017) at Melbourne Law School will be researching Australian management of civil lawsuits (especially malpractice lawsuits).
Judge Yoshitaka Uno (June 2016 – May 2017) at Sydney Law School will be researching the structure and mechanisms of the criminal justice system in Australia, in particular the jury system and the ERISP system; and the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).
ANJeL Visiting Professionals for 2014
Judge Shota Watanuki (from June 2014, USyd) will be researching the management of complex civil litigation and ADR in Australia.
Judge Aya Kobayashi (from June 2014, Melbourne Law School) will be researching Australian class action suits and legal protections for the elderly.
Ms Satomi Asaki (from June 2014, ANU) is a Fukuoka Family Court probation officer researching Australian family law.
Justice Miyazaki Sydney visit 2019
Yuko Miyazaki Justice of the Supreme Court of Japan visited the University of Sydney Law School in 2019.
Tokyo Reunion 2019
ANJeL co-director Prof Luke Nottage with ANJeL former judicial visitors.
ANJeL encourages scholarly engagement with Japanese law by undergraduate, masters and doctoral students. ANJeL delivers a number of courses and programs on Japanese law.
ANJeL sponsors a team of Australian students to compete at the Japan Intercollegiate Negotiation Competition held annually at Sophia University in Tokyo.
ANJeL periodically hires ANJeL Research Assistants. Please contact the Directors for more information.
An ANJeL Associate has prepared a guide for law students or graduates interested in finding work with law firms in Japan. This guide, now several years old, is written from the Australian perspective but may be also useful for those from other jurisdictions.
ANJeL Program Organisers are appointed by ANJeL’s Executive Committee to facilitate a variety of specific programs and ANJeL’s activities in Japan.
Professor Andrew Godwin
Program Co-Convenor (Judges Program)
Professor Andrew Godwin is Professor of Commercial Law at Melbourne Law School, Director of the Melbourne Law Masters, Joint Associate Director of the Corporate Law and Financial Regulation Research Program at the Melbourne Centre for Commercial Law and Associate Director (Commercial law) of the Asian Law Centre. Andrew works and researches in the areas of financial regulation, financial services law, corporate and insolvency law, property law, and the regulation of the legal profession. He has published extensively in both academic and professional journals. He is a co-author of Sackville & Neave Australian Property Law and Ford, Austin and Ramsay Principles of Corporations Law, and co-editor of Research Handbook on Asian Financial Law (Edward Elgar, 2020), The Cambridge Handbook of Twin Peaks Financial Regulation (Cambridge University Press, 2021) and Technology and Corporate Law (Edward Elgar, 2021). Andrew served as Special Counsel and Acting General Counsel at the Australian Law Reform Commission from September 2020 to February 2024. He is a fellow of the Australian Academy of Law, a Distinguished Fellow of the Singapore Academy of Law and a member of the Advisory Board of the Asian Business Law Institute in Singapore.
Micah Burch
Program Co-Convenor (Teaching and Learning)
Micah Burch is a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Law at the University of Sydney. He was appointed Program Co-Convenor (Teaching and Learning) to assist with ANJeL’s educational activities. Micah specialises in taxation law. Prior to academia, Micah practiced at large corporate law firms in New York City and co-founded a publishing house specialising in translations of popular Japanese books. A former Fulbright Fellow in Japan and graduate of Princeton University (East Asian Studies) and Harvard Law School, Micah habitually teaches and lectures in Japan.
James Fisher
Program Co-Convenor (Teaching and Learning) for Mooting
James is a Lecturer at the ANU College of Law, ANJeL Program Co-Convenor (Teaching and Learning) for Mooting, and lead coach for Team Australia at the annual Intercollegiate Negotiation Competition in Tokyo. James was previously an Associate Professor at Sophia University (where he remains a Visiting Lecturer) and Project Associate Professor at the University of Tokyo, and has held visiting academic positions at Meiji and Waseda Universities in Tokyo. James read English and European Law at the University of Oxford (St Catherine's College) and wrote his PhD thesis in the comparative law of trusts at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. He teaches and writes principally in the areas of English and Japanese private law and comparative law theory, with a secondary research profile in law and the humanities, focusing on contemporary Japanese culture. He is the co-author (with Professor Giorgio Fabio Colombo) of Japanese Law and Literature.
Professor Souichirou Kozuka
Program Convenor (ANJeL-in-Japan: Kanto)
Souichirou Kozuka is Professor of Law at Gakushuin University Law Faculty, Tokyo. He was appointed Program Convener to coordinate ANJeL activities in Tokyo and Kanto area of Japan. Professor Kozuka specialises in commercial law, with special interest in distribution agreements; transport law, including maritime and aerial law; competition/intellectual property interface; and regulation of financial institutions. He taught formerly at Chiba University (1995–1998) and Sophia University Law School and has been acting as Correspondent of Unidroit (the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law) since 2001 and as a member of IBA (International Bar Association), business law section, since 2002. He was ANJeL research visitor in February 2005.
Professor Makoto Ibusuki
Program Convenor (ANJeL-in-Japan)
Makoto Ibusuki is Professor of Law at Seijo University, Tokyo. He was appointed Program Convener to coordinate ANJeL activities in Kyoto and Kansai area of Japan. Dr Makoto Ibusuki was professor of criminal procedure at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, when he was an ANJeL Research Visitor in 2003. He is also a pioneer in cyberlaw research and teaching both in and outside of Japan, a founding director of the Hojohogakkai (Association for Legal Informatics) and a key member of a study group promoting IT issues in Japan's current wave of reforms to criminal and civil justice. Professor Ibusuki formerly taught in the Faculty of Law and Policy, Kagoshima University in Kyushu (1990-2002) and at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto (2002-2008). He holds a Ph.D. in law from Hokkaido University (1990), a LLM from Kanazawa University (1984); and a LLB from Shimane University (1982). His major area of research and writing is cyberspace law and criminal procedure. He was ANJeL research visitor in 2003 and a visiting scholar at the John Marshall Law School, Chicago from September 1997 – July 1998.
Stephen Green
Program Convenor (ANJeL-in-Japan: Kansai)
Stephen Green is a law professor and coordinates ANJeL activities in Kansai. He has a LLM (International Economic and Business Law) from Kyushu University; a LLB (Hons) from the Australian National University; and a BSc (Hons) from the University of Western Australia.
Dr Nobumichi Teramura
ANJeL-in-ASEAN Convenor
Dr Nobumichi (Nobu) Teramura is Assistant Professor at the Institute of Asian Studies, University of Brunei Darussalam (UBD) and Affiliate at the University of Sydney Law School Centre for Asian and Pacific Law (CAPLUS), specialising in business law, with a particular interest in arbitration, private international law, contract law and Asian law. As an early-career academic, he is passionate about teaching international business law, international dispute resolution, and contract law. He has taught private international law and commercial law as a Lecturer at the Adelaide Law School in Australia (2019). He has lectured at the College of Law of De La Salle University in the Philippines in 2016, 2017 and 2019 on international arbitration and trade law. In addition, Nobu has teaching and research experience in Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia and Cambodia. He is active in developing institutional academic links among these countries, not only for himself, but also for his colleagues and students, to contribute to promoting legal dialogue among countries in the Asia-Pacific.
Nobu’s recent books include New Frontiers in Asia-Pacific International Arbitration and Dispute Resolution (eds, Wolters Kluwer, 2021) and Ex Aequo et Bono as a Response to the Over-judicialisation of International Commercial Arbitration (Wolters Kluwer, 2021). His recent journal articles include ‘Japan as a Source of Legal Ideas: A View from the Mekong Subregion of ASEAN’ (2021) 13 New Voices in Japanese Studies 19. He is currently working on Cambodian Private International Law (Hart Publishing, expected 2025).
Dr Trevor Ryan
Program Convenor (Research and Special Projects)
Trevor Ryan is an Assistant Professor at the University of Canberra Faculty of Law. He teaches Legal Theory and Constitutional Law. His other research interests include the relationship between law and demographic change, theories of regulation and activism, and various topics in Japanese law. He has also published a novel about Japanese law, Dear Judge Ichiro. Trevor was a visiting scholar at Chuo University from 2006–2008.
Dr Giorgio Fabio Colombo
Program Convenor (ANJeL-in-Europe Convenor)
Giorgio Fabio Colombo is Associate Professor of Law at the Graduate School of Law of Nagoya University, where he is in charge of Comparative private law and International commercial arbitration. Before that he was Visiting researcher at Ritsumeikan University (Kyoto), Adjunct Professor of Japanese Law at “Ca’ Foscari” University of Venice, Italy and Research fellow of Comparative law at the University of Pavia. His research focuses on ADR, Arbitration, Private comparative law, Law and literature, and legal cultures.
Stacey Steele
Founding Convenor, former A/Prof at University of Melbourne
Stacey Steele is Associate Director (Japan) of the Asian Law Centre (ALC), ANJeL’s inaugural affiliate. She was appointed Program Convener to organise the ANJeL-ALC Judges-in-Residence program. Stacey joined the Asian Law Centre at the Law School of the University of Melbourne in 1997 as a research associate and was appointed Associate Director (Japan) in January 2002. Born in Brisbane, Stacey holds degrees from the University of Queensland (BA (Japan)), Monash University (MA (Japan)) and the University of Melbourne (LLB (Hons) and LLM (by thesis)). Stacey commenced articles in March 2000 at a leading Australian commercial law firm and worked as a senior associate in its financial services group, focusing on project/infrastructure and corporate finance. In October 2007, Stacey joined Standard and Poor’s Melbourne office as Associate General Counsel with responsibilities for the Asia-Pacific. Stacey has taught Corporate Banking and Finance Law, as well as Issues in Japanese Law and in graduate subjects offered by the Centre. She recently co-edited Legal education in Asia: Globalization, Change and Contexts (Routledge, 2010). Her other research interests include Japanese insolvency law, law reform, the Japanese legal system and banking law. Stacey practices Chanoyu (The Way of Tea) and is a member of the Urasenke Melbourne Chapter. Stacey is fluent in Japanese.