Japan: Adopted Revision to the Provider Liability Limitation Act

On 21 April 2021, the amended Provider Liability Limitation Act (Act on the Limitation of Liability for Damages of Specified Telecommunications Service Providers and the Right to Demand Disclosure of Identification Information of the Senders) was adopted. The Provider Liability Limitation Act provides users of online services with the right to request the disclosure of sender information, e.g. regarding comments on social media. A user has the right to request such disclosure when the infringement of their rights is evident and the disclosure of the sender's information is justifiable. After the identification of the sender, the user may claim tort damages. Under the amendment, courts may now issue disclosure, provision and non-deletion orders when it comes to the infringement of users' rights and the disclosure of sender information. The law will go into effect on 1 October 2022.