State Compensation Case, Reiwa 5 (wa) No. 8517

In 2023, multiple victims who were forcibly sterilized under Japan's former Eugenic Protection Law filed a state compensation lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court (Case No. Reiwa 5 (wa) 8517). The plaintiffs argued that the legislation and the government's prolonged failure to provide redress violated their constitutional rights to dignity and equality. After deliberations, the Tokyo District Court delivered its ruling in March 2025. It declared the now-defunct Eugenic Protection Law unconstitutional, finding that the forced operations constituted grave human rights violations. The court rejected the government's statute-of-limitations defense and ordered the State of Japan to pay approximately 33 million yen in damages to the plaintiffs. The judgment acknowledged the decades-long suffering of survivors and underscored the state's liability for legislative inaction.

The Tokyo District Court ruled that the former Eugenic Protection Law was unconstitutional and ordered the Japanese government to pay approximately 33 million yen in total compensation to the plaintiffs. The court dismissed the government's argument that the statute of limitations had expired.

Whether the forced sterilizations performed under the Eugenic Protection Law violated Articles 13 (right to pursue happiness) and 14 (right to equality) of the Constitution of Japan; whether the victims' claims were extinguished by the statute of limitations, given the significant time elapsed since the procedures occurred.

The ruling accelerated nationwide legislative efforts, culminating in the Diet's enactment of a law granting lump-sum compensation to all surviving victims of forced sterilization. It prompted an official government apology and intensified public discourse on disability rights, reparations for historical injustices, and the elimination of discriminatory laws.