Case Reiwa 3 (Wa) 135, State Compensation Claim

This case, filed in 2021 (Reiwa 3) under case number Wa 135, involves Korean victims of forced labor during Japan's colonial rule seeking state compensation. The plaintiffs, former laborers and bereaved families, originally sought damages from Nippon Steel Corporation. Following complex litigation where the Supreme Court of Korea ordered the company to pay compensation, and subsequent asset seizure procedures, the Japanese government has been sued directly. The litigation addresses the Japanese government's stance that all claims were settled by the 1965 Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea, clashing with the Korean judiciary's recognition of individual rights to damages.

As of 2025, the case remains pending before the Tokyo District Court. Given the Japanese government's consistent position that such claims are barred by the treaty, a ruling in favor of the plaintiffs would represent a monumental shift.

The central dispute is whether the 1965 Claims Agreement extinguished individual victims' rights to seek compensation, or whether the Japanese government's denial of liability constitutes a tort under state redress law, especially after Korean court rulings ordered Japanese companies to pay.

The case has intensified the historic diplomatic rift between South Korea and Japan, leading to trade disputes, the near-collapse of the GSOMIA intelligence-sharing pact before its restoration, and deep public division over how to heal historical wounds while maintaining modern strategic alliances.