Nagoya court dismisses lawsuit filed on paper under digital civil litigation rules

The Nagoya District Court has dismissed a lawsuit that was filed on paper by a lawyer, ruling that the filing was procedurally improper under Japan’s digitalized civil litigation system, sources have said.

Presiding Judge Ryo Kaiami issued the ruling on Oct. 1 without holding oral arguments, they said.

Amended legislation requiring the digitalization of civil court proceedings took effect in May. While individuals representing themselves are still permitted to submit documents on paper, lawyers acting as legal representatives are required to file documents online.

In its ruling, the court determined that the lawsuit was “procedurally improper because it failed to comply with the prescribed filing method.”

The lawyer had cited a computer malfunction as the reason for filing on paper. However, the judge ruled that the problem amounted to a failure to properly prepare and maintain the necessary equipment, adding that the lawyer could have used another device. The court therefore found that the circumstances did not justify an exception to the online filing requirement.

In August, the lawyer filed the lawsuit on behalf of a man from Aichi Prefecture, seeking to overturn an administrative disposition by a municipal government in the prefecture.

According to the lawyer, the district court had contacted him and instructed him to resubmit the complaint online. However, he said he did not withdraw the lawsuit because the deadline for challenging the administrative disposition was approaching.