Korean lawyer in Japan awarded damages over disciplinary requests

This is a complex case. The lawyer wasn't being persecuted/discriminated for her ethnic background. She received the ire of many because of her position that the J-gov should provide public subsidies to North Korean schools in Japan, just like other schools. I have no doubt that she angered both Japanese and ethnic Korean Japanese alike with this stance. And, their demands that she be disbarred were not accepted. So her atual "damages" were that she suffered "emotional distress". Well that happens if you choose an unpopular position and go public with it. So who has to pay the awarded JY 1,000,000? People who simply expressed their views and opinions that they shouldn't have to subsidize schools that have photos of the Kims at the front of every classroom and believe that the Korean penninsula must be unified under the DPRK.?

Public subsidies (our tax money) for pro-Pyongyang schools in Japan?

No, way. Let Kim pay out of his pockets with change left over from his ICBM projects.

Hating Koreans will remain the national pastime of Japanese people.

@OssanAmerica

So who has to pay the awarded JY 1,000,000

Total of around 1 million yen

Around 1 million yen .

not - JY 1,000,000

it helps to pay attention to details.

Justice will always PREVAIL it's only a matter of time.

Presiding Judge Toru Matsumura rejected the group's argument that their requests for disciplinary action were not intended to racially discriminate against the lawyer, saying that they had used "strong language such as 'acts of treachery' in their condemnation.

If this is NOT discriminatory then I don't know what discrimination is!!

People who simply expressed their views and opinions that they shouldn't have to subsidize schools that have photos of the Kims at the front of every classroom and believe that the Korean penninsula must be unified under the DPRK?

Requesting disciplinary action is beyond expressing a view and opinion, but a request for active harm to be inflicted on the lawyer for her opinion and work.

@tomsan you do know that NK has never done anything wrong to Japan, and Japan wasn’t involved in USA failed war right. These are children who deserve education. What’s your beef with NK related innocent kids?

So who has to pay the awarded JY 1,000,000? People who simply expressed their views and opinions that they shouldn't have to subsidize schools that have photos of the Kims at the front of every classroom and believe that the Korean penninsula must be unified under the DPRK.?

Its important to note that the defendants weren't just "simply expressing their views and opinions" but rather were abusing the Bar Association's complaint procedure to try to have this person disciplined (ie have her law license suspended) for her views.

That complaint procedure isn't just a thing for random members of the public to lodge complaints against lawyers whose politics they don't like. Its a professional disciplinary mechanism which is meant to be used by clients of lawyers who have done things like cheating their clients or other acts of professional misconduct. Using it to launch a political witch hunt against someone is a pretty egregious abuse of the system.

@tomsan you do know that NK has never done anything wrong to Japan, and Japan wasn’t involved in USA failed war right. These are children who deserve education. What’s your beef with NK related innocent kids?

Really？ So who are all those families still waiting for the returns of abductees?

Besides, these kids could receive proper education at any other schools for almost free nowadays if they chose to do so

Hating Koreans will remain the national pastime of Japanese people.

If this is NOT discriminatory then I don't know what discrimination is!!

If Japan is discriminatory toward Koreans, they wouldn't be working as officially licensed lawyers registered at BAR association in Japan in the first place.

@tomsan you do know that NK has never done anything wrong to Japan, and Japan wasn’t involved in USA failed war right. These are children who deserve education. What’s your beef with NK related innocent kids?

North Korea should pay then.

Simple as that.

Kyo wa heiwa dayo ne:

Around 1 million yen .

not - JY 1,000,000

it helps to pay attention to details.

Ummm... 1,000,000 is 1 million.

Kyo wa heiwa dayo neToday  12:16 pm JST

@OssanAmerica

So who has to pay the awarded JY 1,000,000

Total of around 1 million yen

Around 1 million yen .

not - JY 1,000,000

it helps to pay attention to details.

It helps to learn how to read and count. You really out did yourself this time.

MarkToday  12:28 pm JST

Presiding Judge Toru Matsumura rejected the group's argument that their requests for disciplinary action were not intended to racially discriminate against the lawyer, saying that they had used "strong language such as 'acts of treachery' in their condemnation.

If this is NOT discriminatory then I don't know what discrimination is!!

Then you don't know what discrimination is. Saying that someone is guilty of an "act of treachery" is not "discrimination".

MarkToday  12:28 pm JST

Presiding Judge Toru Matsumura rejected the group's argument that their requests for disciplinary action were not intended to racially discriminate against the lawyer, saying that they had used "strong language such as 'acts of treachery' in their condemnation.

If this is NOT discriminatory then I don't know what discrimination is!!

Then you don't know what discrimination is. Saying that someone is guilty of an "act of treachery" is not "discrimination".

rainydayToday  12:42 pm JST

So who has to pay the awarded JY 1,000,000? People who simply expressed their views and opinions that they shouldn't have to subsidize schools that have photos of the Kims at the front of every classroom and believe that the Korean penninsula must be unified under the DPRK.?

Its important to note that the defendants weren't just "simply expressing their views and opinions" but rather were abusing the Bar Association's complaint procedure to try to have this person disciplined (ie have her law license suspended) for her views.

And the Bar Association rejected their request. Because it was rejected, there was no "abuse". Those people were not barred from making that request.

Kyo wa heiwa dayo ne:

Around 1 million yen .

not - JY 1,000,000

it helps to pay attention to details.

Ummm... 1,000,000 is 1 million.

I didn't bother to know if it was , or .

And the Bar Association rejected their request. Because it was rejected, there was no "abuse". Those people were not barred from making that request.

And now a court of law has found that it did in fact constitute an abuse and has ordered them to pay damages as a result.

kennyGToday  02:05 pm JST

If Japan is discriminatory toward Koreans, they wouldn't be working as officially licensed lawyers registered at BAR association in Japan in the first place.

ethnic Korean lawyer

Doesn't say if she is a Japanese citizen or not.

Up to a few years ago, non-Japanese citizens were not allowed to become 弁護士.

ethnic Korean lawyer

Doesn't say if she is a Japanese citizen or not.

Thanks but I rarely post here without referring to original news source. All of many those report her to be a Zainichi Korean. If she is a Japanese, she is a Japanese and not Zainichi any longer.

Up to a few years ago, non-Japanese citizens were not allowed to become 弁護士.

So..? Non-Korean citizens were still not allowed to become 弁護士 in both Koreas, not to mention, Vice chairman of 日弁連 is a Zainichi Korean

kennyGToday  08:14 pm JST

Thanks but I rarely post here without referring to original news source. All of many those report her to be a Zainichi Korean. If she is a Japanese, she is a Japanese and not Zainichi any longer. 

Ok, thanks, didn't know about the Zainichi reference.

So..? Non-Korean citizens were still not allowed to become 弁護士 in both Koreas, not to mention, Vice chairman of 日弁連 is a Zainichi Korean

It's not a so or not so comment. I'm just filling in the gap as to why I was wondering if she was a Japanese citizen.

One discriminative matter I do see with bengoshi in Japan is that their lapel pin is bigger than the lapel pin for foreign-registered lawyers.

rainydayToday  07:24 pm JST

And the Bar Association rejected their request. Because it was rejected, there was no "abuse". Those people were not barred from making that request.

And now a court of law has found that it did in fact constitute an abuse and has ordered them to pay damages as a result.

And it will be overturned on Appeal. Because people who were not barred, restricted or refrained from making such requests to the Bar Association did so, and were correctly rejected.

And it will be overturned on Appeal. Because people who were not barred, restricted or refrained from making such requests to the Bar Association did so, and were correctly rejected.

Not much of a ground for appeal.

People are not barred, restricted or refrained from calling the police to complain about someone either for that matter, but if you do it 900 times to report someone just for saying something you disagree with you should expect some consequences.

rainydayJuly 7  10:12 pm JST

And it will be overturned on Appeal. Because people who were not barred, restricted or refrained from making such requests to the Bar Association did so, and were correctly rejected.

Not much of a ground for appeal.

People are not barred, restricted or refrained from calling the police to complain about someone either for that matter, but if you do it 900 times to report someone just for saying something you disagree with you should expect some consequences.

Plenty of grounds for an appeal. You are imagining that the people who complained to the Bar Association did so repeatedly 900 times. Which is absurd as it doesn't take multiple compaints for them to address it.

In your "calling police" analogy, the consequence will be exactly what happened with the Bar Association, the report will be dismissed.

Statistics disagreed. It gets worse in recent years as South Korea becomes wealthier than Japan gradually. Japanese people take frustrated with Koreans due to the inability of coping with Japan's national failures. Of course, Japanese politicians inflame more hate against Koreans to deflect the public opinions away on certain topics.

It’s not statistics but just survey. Regardless, if you could link either statistics or survey that support your reasoning like in the above, I appreciate it.