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July 12, 2026
 

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DIVORCE

The Kyoto District Court in the city of Kyoto heard a complaint Wednesday from a man who says his estranged wife presented someone else's sperm as his and was able to undergo successful fertility treatment using it without his awareness.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 4, 2026
Man sues hospital after wife gives birth using someone else’s sperm
The woman was sentenced in April 2025 for forging the man’s consent form, but the hospital said it gave adequate explanation and that the man’s claims are incorrect.
The Children and Families Agency has established a subsidy system to make it easier to secure child support payments from former spouses.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 4, 2026
Japan to subsidize costs to seize salaries and assets for child support
The subsidy system was created in line with the revised Civil Code, which entered into force Wednesday.
Japan's rollout of a new joint custody system for divorcing couples has drawn mixed reactions from the public, with some abuse survivors voicing concerns over continued contact with or interference from former partners while proponents welcomed the move because it puts the country more in line with international standards.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 31, 2026
Japan rolls out new joint custody system
The change ends the country’s long-standing sole custody framework, under which only one parent could retain parental rights following a divorce.
The high court in Osaka Prefecture, near Wakayama Prefecture, dismissed the prosecution's appeal against the Wakayama District Court's December 2024 ruling that had found the defendant not guilty.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 24, 2026
Osaka High Court upholds ex-wife’s acquittal in ‘Don Juan of Kishu’ case
The wealthy businessperson’s wife was indicted in May 2021 on suspicion of murdering him by making him take a lethal dose of a stimulant drug at their home in 2018.
Until now, sole custody was the only option a divorced couple had, in contrast with many Western countries where joint custody is commonplace.
JAPAN / Society / EXPLAINER
Mar 24, 2026
What you need to know about Japan’s new joint custody system
For the first time ever, revisions to the family law will allow parents to choose between sole custody or joint custody following a divorce.
With parental authority at stake, abuse victims’ looming fear of the possibility that their ex-spouse could once again be in their lives is real. But the frustration of the current sole custody arrangement for a noncustodial parent is also hard to ignore.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Mar 24, 2026
Fear and fairness: Japan’s joint custody reform sparks debate
From April, Japan will allow joint parental authority. For some, that means more time with their child, but for domestic abuse survivors, there is only fear.
Under a revised Civil Code, joint parental custody of children and a statutory child support system after divorce will be introduced.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Dec 25, 2025
Japan to start joint parental custody after divorce in April
The new framework represents a major shift in the post-World War II legislative system governing families.
More than a quarter of married people in Japan report spousal violence of some kind, and nearly 1 in 10 women have experienced financial abuse, according to a 2023 survey by the Japan Cabinet Office.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Dec 8, 2025
Finding a way forward from financial abuse
In Japan, nearly 1 in 10 married women have been the victim of financial abuse. Two expats share their stories, along with the resources and advice that helped them through.
Under a new framework announced by the Justice Ministry, a custodial parent will be entitled to ¥20,000 ($128) per child per month from the other parent after a divorce even without a negotiated or court-ordered child-support agreement.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 28, 2025
Japan finalizes statutory child support payment at ¥20,000 per child

Though there were calls for the support amount to be higher, the Justice Ministry says it is appropriate as it is designed to serve as a “temporary and supplementary” measure.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (center) and other ministers prior to a Cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office on Friday
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 31, 2025
Japan to introduce joint child custody system in April 2026
A system of statutory child support will also be introduced on the same date.
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won arrives to attend a hearing at the National Assembly in Seoul in December 2016.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Oct 16, 2025
South Korean top court partially overturns SK Group chief’s near $1B divorce deal
Last year, the Seoul High Court said Chey should pay $972.5 million to his estranged wife, Roh So-yeong, as part of their planned divorce and additional funds in alimony.
The Justice Ministry has drafted an ordinance proposing a legally mandated post-divorce child support amount of ¥20,000 per child per month, sources said.
JAPAN
Aug 29, 2025
Statutory post-divorce child support to be set at ¥20,000 a month
According to a 2021 welfare ministry survey, only 28.1% of single-mother households and 8.7% of single-father households had actually received child support from the other parents.
Forbidden from seeing friends and forced to devote herself to housework, Reina (whose name has been changed), a 37-year-old Filipino national living in the city of Nagoya, became socially isolated.
JAPAN
Mar 7, 2025
Foreign single mothers struggle with language barriers and visas
Experts are urging the government to create a safer environment where these women can continue living in Japan without fear.
People walk past a banner that reads "no to divorce" outside the Quiapo Church in Manila. The Philippines is one of just two countries — along with Vatican City — where divorce is illegal, and the Catholic Church retains a powerful grip on society and outsize influence on politics.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Feb 11, 2025
Philippine divorce activists vow to fight on
The Philippines is one of just two countries — along with Vatican City — where divorce remains illegal.
A handout photo shows Kosuke Nozaki (right), who was found dead of a drug overdose, and Saki Sudo, who was his wife.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 12, 2024
28-year-old widow of ‘Don Juan of Kishu’ acquitted of his murder
Prosecutors had argued that Saki Sudo, 28, somehow caused her wealthy 77-year-old husband Kosuke Nozaki to ingest drugs, resulting in a fatal overdose.
People holds a banner saying "Protect children from joint custody after divorce" during a rally outside the parliament building in Tokyo in March.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Jun 25, 2024
Gender gap fuels disputes as Japan gets joint custody
The change has proved polarizing in a country where campaigners say sole custody acts as a bulwark against forms of domestic abuse.
Tokyo police investigators on May 24 head toward the house in Tokyo's Shinagawa Ward where Fuyumi Takanami, 37, and her three children were found dead.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 19, 2024
Tokyo man arrested over murder of ex-wife and three children
The 46-year-old man said that his ex-wife constantly berated him and had been pressuring him to leave the house after their divorce.
To qualify for the advance payment offered by the city of Saitama, the single parent must reside in the city and fulfill several other criteria.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 6, 2024
Saitama aids single parents with advance child support payments
The city will offer a maximum amount of ¥50,000 per month per child to the affected parent for up to three months, and seek reimbursement from the former spouse.
Legislation that allows the option of joint custody of children after divorce is passed at the Upper House plenary session on Friday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 17, 2024
Japan changes law to allow joint custody after divorce
For decades in Japan, one parent — almost always the mother — has been granted legal custody when a marriage ends.
Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
May 11, 2024
How ‘Reiwa moms’ are reshaping motherhood in Japan
Five years into the Reiwa Era and the challenges Japan’s moms face are unique, though the qualities that help them persevere haven’t changed a bit.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
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