I am Hideyuki Sakamoto, and I assumed the position of President of the Japan In-house Lawyers Association (JILA) on April 1, 2022. Established in 2001, JILA has grown to over 2,200 members.

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in strengthening the functions of corporate legal departments. Legal departments are now expected not only to serve as guardians protecting companies from legal risks but also to strengthen their partnership function in supporting business growth. Research is also progressing in the filed of legal operations to enable legal departments to provide legal services more efficiently through the use of legal technology and to focus on value-added works.

As the roles demanded of legal departments and changes in the social environment evolve, the roles and skills required of legal professionals are also changing. The number of in-house lawyers has increased more than fivefold from 587 in 2011 to 3,391 in 2024, which is considered a manifestation of expectations for strengthening corporate legal departments. Furthermore, an increasing number of companies have established Chief Legal Officer positions as members of the management team to oversee legal departments, with in-house lawyers being appointed to these positions.

In addition, there has been an increase in cases where in-house lawyers are actively involved in policy planning and dispute resolution in central government ministries and local governments. Fixed-term civil servants in central government ministries increased from 86 in 2011 to 147 in 2024, while fixed-term civil servants in local public entities significantly increased from 8 in 2011 to 117 in 2024.

Although each in-house lawyer’s environment varies—whether they are new graduates entering large legal departments, sole legal representatives at startup companies, or fixed-term civil servants in local public entities—many common interests exist, such as responding to legal amendments, daily work innovations, and career development . JILA offers general training sessions as well as specialized research groups, industry-specific divisions, and regional branches that provide focused training on areas of interest, supporting career development and networking.

Furthermore, we conduct research on the current state of in-house lawyers and engage in policy recommendations and exchanges of opinions with external organizations to promote the expansion of in-house legal professionals.

JILA is able to provide enhanced support to its members thanks to the sponsorship funds from supporting organizations that endorse JILA’s objectives. As of June 2025, we have 89 organizations as supporting members.

JILA will continue to actively promote initiatives to support the further success of in-house lawyers.

June 20, 2025
Hideyuki Sakamoto
President, Japan In-house Lawyers Association