JAPAN Law and Practice Contributed by: Junichi Ikeda, Takayuki Fujii, Satoyuki Nakano and Tomoaki Kitaguchi, Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu
• the document is in the possession of a party that has referred to it in the suit; • the party that requested the court to issue the submission order has the right to ask the holder of the document to deliver it or allow it to be inspected; or • the document has been produced in the inter - est of the party that requested the court to issue the submission order or regarding the legal relationships between that party and the person who holds the document. If the document does not fall under any of the foregoing, the holder of the document may refuse to submit it if it falls under the catego - ries set forth by Article 220 of the Code of Civil Procedure, which include the categories of a document concerning confidential information in connection with a public officer’s duties and a document prepared exclusively for use by the holder of the document. Under the Act Partially Amending the Code of Civil Procedure, electron - ic records may be submitted as evidence. and the parties may request that the court issue an order for the submission of an electronic record. Request for Information Through the Bar Association An attorney registered in Japan may request the Bar Association to make enquiries to pub - lic offices or public or private organisations for information necessary for their case. It is understood that those who have received such an enquiry should submit a report on the mat - ters under enquiry unless there are justifiable grounds not to do so. 2.8 Rules for Expert Evidence in Product
who will be designated by the court. The expert will state their opinion in writing or orally. Under the Act Partially Amending the Code of Civil Pro - cedure mentioned in 2.7 Rules for Disclosure of Documents in Product Liability Cases , the expert may state their opinion in an electronic file, etc. As an exception to this, by its own authority and without the request by a party, the court may commission a government agency or public office, a foreign government agency or public office, or a corporation to give expert testimony. Expert Report In addition to the foregoing, a party may submit a report – prepared by an expert appointed by the party – to the court as documentary evidence. It is also possible to request that the court con - duct a witness examination of the experts. If the opposing party wishes to rebut the content of an expert report, the opposing party may request that the court allows it to conduct an examina - tion of the expert or to submit a report prepared by their own expert. Technical Adviser In product liability cases, highly technical mat - ters often become central issues. In such cases, the court may, after hearing the opinions of the parties, have a technical adviser participate in the proceedings to assist the judge in under - standing technical matters (Article 92–2 of the Code of Civil Procedure). The consent of the parties is not required for the court to have a technical adviser participate in the proceedings, but upon the petition of both parties, the court is required to revoke its determination for the participation of a technical adviser (Article 92–4 of the Code of Civil Proce - dure). Accordingly, it is unlikely that the court
Liability Cases Expert Testimony
Upon the request of a party, the court may hear expert testimony to obtain the input of an expert,
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