Three courts have refused to allow three Korean residents working as lawyers to assume commissioned jobs despite being nominated by their bar associations, because they are not Japanese, attorneys said Thursday.
The Kobe Family Court refused to appoint Yang Yong Ja as its arbitrator in 2003, the Tokyo District Court rejected Un Yuki as its judicial commissioner in 2005 and the Sendai Family Court turned down Choi Sin Ui as its arbitrator this year, the lawyers said.
The Supreme Court said the status of the jobs is similar to that of civil servants in positions of authority and therefore require Japanese nationality, but their fellow lawyers are voicing objections to the court measures, they said.