Wider den Exotismus? Zur Bedeutung der Kultur für das Verständnis des modernen japanischen Rechts

Abstract

It is often stressed that Japanese law can only be understood within its broader cultural context. This brief lecture argues that if this is true, it is hardly so because Japanese black-letter law shows more cultural flavour than the laws of other jurisdictions. Using a path-dependency approach and drawing on examples from various fields of law, the author suggests that the opposite is more likely to be correct. As important parts of Japanese black-letter law historically were derived from western models, many rules rather than Japanese culture reflect the context of their origin. It is the particular process of adjusting these rules to the Japanese setting which requires us to broaden our perspective and grasp Japanese law in context.