On June 20, 2007, the Diet enacted a law to amend the Code of Criminal Procedure aiming to protect rights and interests of crime victims, which includes establishment of a new system enabling crime victims to participate in criminal trials. This system allows crime victims and their bereaved families (hereinafter referred to as crime victims) of cases to be examined by Saiban-in (lay judges) or those cases involving professional negligence leading to injury or death to attend trials, question defendants and witnesses, and demand for punishment. The system will be implemented about six months before the start of the Saiban-in system.

The Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) repeatedly requested careful deliberations because the system could undermine the function of criminal procedure in finding the truth and making judgments for fair sentences based on objective evidence and especially could cause serious troubles in operation of the Saiban-in system to be introduced in 2009. In this regard, the JFBA released president statements and opinions, and other bar associations also made president statements.

The ruling parties amended the bill during the deliberation of the House of Representatives to include supplementary provisions: 1. the law should be reviewed after three years of its enforcement, and 2. necessary measures should be taken to ensure that crime victims willing to participate in criminal trials but have limited financial means receive legal assistance from attorneys. This amended bill became law.

The JFBA made a president statement denouncing hasty legislation of participation of crime victims in criminal trials and promising its every effort in order that the system will be operated in a way which fully guarantees constitutional rights of defendants as well as understanding pain and suffering of crime victims, with taking into account the review of the system to be conducted three years later.

Furthermore, the JFBA urges and offers its utmost cooperation to ensure that crime victims have legal assistance from attorneys as stipulated in the supplementary provisions by the start of the system.