On the 15th of November, 2002, JCLU presented its proposal to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and the members of the Asu no Saibansho wo Kangaeru Kondan-KaiEcommittee, which was established at the General Secretariat of the Supreme Court on January 30, 2002, to deliberate on court reform. The proposal asks to improve the current procedure set along the Outline of the Office Procedure Regarding the Disclosure of Judicial Administrative Documents Owned by Supreme Court (Outline), which was established in April 2001. The suggestion is in line with the pending court reform in that it hopes to enhance the effective disclosure of information in the judicial area.
The current Outline does not provide for any procedure to contest a Supreme Court decision denying the disclosure of judicial administrative documents, numerous people have been left without any remedy in the face of such a decision. JCLU therefore suggests that the courts should adopt their own Bill on Disclosure of information, or as a tentative measure, the Supreme Court justice, together with an advisory board consisting of third parties, should be given jurisdiction to hear appeals from decisions denying disclosure of judicial administrative documents.
The full text of the proposal (available in Japanese only) can be accessed at the JCLUs website or obtained upon request to the Secretariat of the JCLU.