The election of Reiko Fuchigami as president of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) in February represented a notable stride towards gender equality in Japan’s legal sector. As reported by Law.com, Fuchigami is the first woman to be named chief of the JFBA, an organization that pioneered the regulation of Japan’s legal professionals since its establishment in 1949.
According to Fuchigami, the law profession in Japan was quite male-dominated when she became a registered lawyer in 1983. As she recalls, established law firms seldom hired women lawyers, making it challenging for her to find suitable employment opportunities. Her earliest employment experiences were with a government ministry and a small legal office, before she decided to practice independently in the mid-1990s.
The commendable strides that Japan’s legal profession has made in promoting diversity are now under threat, as the popularity of the profession diminishes. As a result, Japan’s leading law firms face increasing pressure to not only promote diversity but also guarantee the sustainability of the legal talent pool.