Japan Bar Association Group Calls Out Failure to Explain Disability Service Denial

By Barrier Free Japan

June 18 2027

TOKYO – The Japan Federation of Bar Associations said via a press release on June 16th that Tachikawa City’s failure to provide written reasons when partially denying disability welfare services to a woman violated Article 8 of the Administrative Procedure Act and risked infringing her right to fair administrative procedures derived from the principles embodied in Article 31 of the Constitution.

The case concerned decisions reducing the authorized amount of home-help services for the complainant’s wife from 15 hours per month to 10 hours per month in September 2021 and maintaining the reduced level in October 2021. According to the federation, the city failed to state the reasons for the partial denials in the written notices issued to the recipient.

The federation called on the city to provide sufficient written reasons whenever issuing partial denial decisions under the disability welfare services system and urged the Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry to reinforce the requirement nationwide.