ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses how the provision of legal services to the indigent and other under-represented people can be affected by the specific legal, social, and institutional context of a given country, and how it can be altered by changes in the political environment. The legal system, which mainly empowers the government and reduces legal risks to the government and businesses, served the post-war elite just as it did their prewar counterparts. In terms of internal regulation, individual advertisement is strictly limited to forms which are virtually meaningless as a means of providing information to potential clients. The Justice Ministry has consistently taken the initiative at every step of the debate with the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, and has wisely framed its proposal in more neutral, universal terms. In Japan, Communist - or Socialist-oriented attorneys are the main forces of cause lawyering. The Justice Ministry seems to be preparing to draft a law on legal aid.
