Reiwa 5 (Wa) No. 13 Damages Claim Case

In 2025, the Tokyo District Court heard a damages lawsuit filed by South Korean plaintiffs, reportedly including surviving comfort women and forced labor victims or their bereaved families, against the Government of Japan. The plaintiffs alleged that they suffered severe physical and psychological harm during Japan’s 1910–1945 colonial rule and demanded official compensation. Japan invoked the 1965 Agreement on the Settlement of Problems Concerning Property and Claims and the doctrine of sovereign immunity. The court examined whether the 1965 treaty extinguished individual rights to reparation and whether Japan could be sued in its own courts for pre-treaty acts. The court ruled that all claims had been comprehensively settled by the bilateral agreement and that the state was immune from such civil actions. The case underscored enduring tensions over historical accountability in East Asia.

The court dismissed all claims, ruling that the 1965 treaty precluded individual compensation claims and that the Government of Japan was protected by state immunity.

Whether the 1965 Claims Settlement Agreement permanently extinguished individuals’ rights to seek damages for colonial-era atrocities, and whether Japan enjoys state immunity from such suits in domestic courts.

The verdict deepened diplomatic frictions between Japan and South Korea, drew condemnation from international human rights groups, and triggered protests by surviving victims and civic organizations, reinforcing perceptions that Japan has not fully atoned for its wartime past.