JAPAN Law and Practice Contributed by: Shingo Yamada, Yugo Komori, Yasuhiro Akita and Takuma Inoue, Oh-Ebashi LPC & Partners
became aware of the non-conformity. Failure to give such notice precludes the buyer from bringing a claim based on the non-conformity unless the seller was aware of the non-conformity at the time of delivery or was unaware of it because of gross negligence. A claim for damages based on contractual liability is extinguished by prescription if it is not exercised within five years from the time when the buyer became aware that the claim could be exercised. Furthermore, the claim is also extinguished when ten years have elapsed from the date when the claim became exer - cisable. Where harm to life or body is involved, the limitation period is extended to 20 years. 2.4 Jurisdictional Requirements for Product Liability Claims Whether Japanese courts have jurisdiction is gener - ally determined based on the international jurisdiction provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, and there are no jurisdictional rules specific to product liability claims. The courts have jurisdiction in the following circumstances. In All Cases Where a corporation’s principal office or business office is located in Japan. Where the representative or person in charge of busi - ness is domiciled in Japan, if the corporation has no office in Japan or its location is unknown. Tort and Product Liability Where the place of the tort or the place where the damage occurred is in Japan. In product liability cases, the place of the tort is gen - erally understood as the place where the product was manufactured. Where damage occurs in Japan because of a defect in a product manufactured out - side Japan, Japanese courts do not have jurisdiction unless such damage was ordinarily foreseeable. Contract Where the place of performance of the relevant obliga - tion as specified in the contract is located in Japan.
Where, under the law of the place chosen in the con - tract, the place of performance of the relevant obliga - tion is located in Japan. 2.5 Pre-Action Procedures and Requirements for Product Liability Claims In Japan, there are no mandatory pre-action proce - dures or requirements that must be followed before the commencement of civil proceedings in product liability cases. 2.6 Rules for Preservation of Evidence in Product Liability Claims In civil proceedings in Japan, there is no rule under which parties are required to preserve evidence, either before or after the commencement of civil proceed - ings, including any obligation equivalent to a litigation hold in the United States. On the other hand, there is a procedure under which a party may apply to the court for the preservation of evidence held by opposing parties or third parties to prevent the loss or destruction of evidence. A party may apply for the preservation of evidence either before or after the commencement of civil proceed - ings; however, such application must be based on a finding that there are circumstances where it will be difficult to use the evidence unless the examination of the evidence is conducted in advance. 2.7 Rules for Disclosure of Documents in Product Liability Cases In Japan, there is no procedure for broad-ranging disclosure of evidence equivalent to discovery in the United States; the following are examples of mecha - nisms related to evidence disclosure under Japanese law. Inquiry by a Bar Association An inquiry by a bar association is a procedure under which an attorney, in connection with a case they had been retained for, conducts inquiries through a Bar association by requesting necessary information from public authorities, companies and other organisations. An attorney may use this procedure either before or after the commencement of civil proceedings. The Supreme Court has confirmed that recipients of such
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