Message from the Director

 

 

  Hitotsubashi University, which originated as a commercial law training institute, recently celebrated its 150th anniversary. With a tradition emphasizing practical learning and an international perspective as part of a free and liberal academic culture, the University has produced many talented graduates, predominantly in the business world, and contributed to the development of the social economy.

  The Hitotsubashi University School of Law, founded in 2004, has also upheld the philosophy of nurturing legal professionals who are familiar with business law, have a broad international perspective, and have a heightened awareness of human rights, based on the traditions and academic culture of the University. Our Business Law Course is a symbol of this. As this course is taught by lawyers at the forefront of corporate legal practice, our students gain an insight into the latest legal practices. In addition, there are programs catering to students’ various interests and contributing to diverse career development after graduation, such as externships at various institutions both domestic and overseas, including overseas law firms, and a human rights clinic that handles pending constitutional law cases. There are also systems in place to support students’ independent learning, such as Advanced Seminars, where students conduct in-depth research on a specific topic in small groups, and Legal Research, where students write research papers under the supervision of faculty members.

  Our law school may often attract attention for its students’ high pass rate in the national bar examination. However, since its founding, our law school has consistently aimed to train highly motivated legal professionals who will play leading roles in various fields of society rather than simply focus on achieving the short-term goal of passing the bar examination. In the twenty years since our school was founded, our graduates have excelled in various fields, such as lawyers in the fields of business law and criminal defense, judges and prosecutors, legal experts in international organizations, government agencies and companies, and legal researchers. Their success is testament that the ideals and goals we have set since the beginning have borne fruit.

  In recent years, the legal training system has undergone a major turning point, with the establishment of an accelerated law course for aspiring legal professionals in the Faculty of Law and the possibility since 2023 for our students to sit the bar examination prior to graduation. Despite these changes, we will not change our original philosophy and goals, and will continue to work to train leading legal professionals who will lead the next generation in order to create a better society.

  We look forward to welcoming all of you who have high aspirations.

 

TAMAI Toshiyuki

Director, Hitotsubashi University School of Law