Japan Adopts New Mediation Act and Sets Path to Accede to Singapore Convention
Japan’s New Mediation Act
On April 21, 2023, Japan announced the adoption of a Mediation Act, which lays the foundation for a robust mediation framework within the country. It provides that a Japanese court must enforce an international settlement agreement, once a party has submitted the agreement and documents proving that it is an international settlement arising from a mediation. To avoid such enforcement, an opposing party must establish to the court’s satisfaction that one of a limited number of grounds for declining enforcement has been established--such as:
Incapacity of a party;
Invalidity of the agreement under applicable law;
The mediator’s serious breach of applicable standards; and
Bias-related issues.
The Mediation Act was adopted to enhance Japan’s mediation infrastructure and encourage the use of mediation in cross-border disputes in Japan. The Act is seen as an indicator of Japan’s interest in leading the global mediation community to promote mediation as a means of resolving cross-border disputes—to demonstrate Japan’s mediation-friendly culture.
One of the additional significant implications of Japan's Mediation Act is its alignment with the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation (commonly referred to as the “Singapore Convention”). The Singapore Convention was signed by 56 countries, including the United States, to promote easier enforcement of mediated settlements across borders and now countries are beginning the process of ratifying it. The Singapore Convention became effective September 20, 2020, but only applies to any country six months after that country has deposited with the United Nations its ratification, acceptance, approval or accession. Right now, just eight countries are parties, but many will become bound in the coming years. Japan may be able to be at the forefront of the countries acceding to the Singapore Convention, with this new Mediation Act.
As an aside: The U.S. has not yet ratified the Singapore Convention. The American Bar Association has urged the Department of State to seek accession by the Senate of the convention as soon as possible, but the exact timeline for U.S. accession remains uncertain.