Expansion

Contribution to Judicial Precedents

Against such historical background, the firm represented concerned parties and litigants in a large number of major cases, including many cases which resulted in setting judicial precedents in the Supreme Court. There was also a further increase in the number of requests for legal opinions during this period, and copies of some of these opinions are still kept in our office now. Records show that between 1922 and 1935 the firm annually handled from two to five lawsuits that led to setting judicial precedents in the Supreme Court, and produced at least 60 legal opinions per year. Among them are cases of historic significance in the practice of corporate and commercial law.
Many young attorneys joined the firm over this period and received training and guidance from Dr. Iwata in person. It was during this period that the firm, in addition to many civil and commercial lawsuits, took responsibility for the settlement of all debts and credits of the Kuhara conglomerate, consisting of Hitachi Mine and other businesses, which had fallen on hard times in the recession following World War I.

At the same time as he was expanding his practice, Dr. Iwata played a leading role in the founding of the Dai-Ichi Tokyo Bar Association in 1923. Before then, there had been only one bar association in Tokyo, known as the Tokyo Bar Association. Due to differing views among members concerning the role and mission of a bar association, several prominent lawyers, including Dr. Iwata, established the new Dai-Ichi Tokyo Bar Association to be independent from the Tokyo Bar Association. To this day, a bust of Dr. Iwata is on display in a conference room of the Dai-Ichi Tokyo Bar Association.

History of the Firm