Administrative Disposition Revocation Case (Reiwa 5 (Gyo-U) 255)

In 2025, the Tokyo District Court adjudicated an administrative appeal filed by Park Hyun-jung, a Zainichi Korean born and raised in Japan, against the Minister of Justice. The plaintiff sought the revocation of a deportation order issued by the Tokyo Immigration Services Agency based on a prior minor criminal conviction. The plaintiff argued that the administrative disposition was an excessive abuse of discretionary power, violating the principle of proportionality as he had no significant ties to Korea and had fully served his sentence. The defense maintained that the deportation order was a legitimate exercise of sovereign power to exclude foreign nationals with criminal records. The case examined the strict scrutiny standard required for deporting long-term residents who have established their life bases solely within Japan.

The Tokyo District Court ruled in favor of the plaintiff, revoking the deportation order. The court held that the Minister's decision failed to adequately weigh the plaintiff's long-term social integration against the severity of the past crime, thereby lacking proportionality and constituting a material error in fact-finding.

Whether the deportation order constituted an illegal abuse of discretionary power exceeding the limits of the Immigration Control Act, and whether the criteria for granting "Special Permission for Residence" were unfairly narrowed by the administration.

The ruling was hailed as a landmark victory for immigration rights, setting a judicial precedent that strictly limits the government's absolute discretion in deporting long-term foreign residents. It prompted the Japanese Diet to consider legislative amendments clarifying the legal status and rights of stateless de facto second-generation migrants.