The Liberal Democratic Party approved a bill on April 13, 2024 [1], to generally prohibit prosecutors from appealing court decisions to grant retrials.

This legislative shift aims to prevent the prosecution from using appeals to delay the legal process for those seeking to overturn convictions. By limiting these appeals, the government intends to expedite the retrial system and strengthen protections against wrongful convictions.

The decision followed a joint meeting of LDP committees, including the Legal Affairs Division, held within the National Diet. Following the meeting, lawmakers including Masahiko Shibayama, Tomomi Inada, and Takako Suzuki held a press conference to discuss the approval of the amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure [1], [2].

Under the current system, prosecutors can file an appeal, known as a "koku," when a court decides to open a retrial. This process often creates significant delays in the legal proceedings for defendants who have already spent years or decades in prison. The approved proposal seeks to integrate a general ban on such appeals into the main body of the law [1], [2].

Lawmakers said that the reform is necessary to ensure the swift operation of the retrial system. The goal is to remove procedural hurdles that have historically allowed the state to prolong the time it takes for a court to examine new evidence or testimony in a retrial case [1], [2].

While the LDP joint meeting approved the measure on April 13, 2024 [1], some reports indicated conflicting views on the timing of the bill's submission to the Diet. Some sources said that the government intended to proceed with submission procedures after the LDP's approval, while others suggested a potential delay in the government's plan to present the bill to the legislature [1], [2].

“The Liberal Democratic Party approved a bill... to generally prohibit prosecutors from appealing court decisions to grant retrials.”

This move represents a significant shift in the balance of power between the Japanese state and the accused. By restricting the ability of prosecutors to block the start of a retrial through appeals, the LDP is addressing a long-standing criticism of the Japanese judiciary: that the system is overly weighted toward the prosecution, making it nearly impossible for the wrongly convicted to find relief in a timely manner.