Tokyo Court Rules Covid Business Order Illegal, But Dismisses Compensation
The Tokyo District Court has ruled that the Tokyo Metropolitan Government had no need to order a restaurant chain to shorten business hours to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
But it dismissed a compensation claim by the firm, saying it was not the local government's fault.
The metropolitan government issued the order in March 2021 based on special legislation that allows tougher anti-virus measures.
It argued that the restaurant chain operator Global-Dining was raising infection risks by refusing to comply with its request to close the outlets at 8 p.m. A coronavirus state of emergency was in place in the capital at that time.
The operator filed a compensation suit against the government, arguing that the legislation and the order based on it violate the constitutional guarantees of freedom of business and equality under the law.
Presiding judge Matsuda Norihiro said the plaintiff's restaurants had anti-virus measures in place, and that operating at night didn't immediately lead to higher infection risks.
Matsuda said the Tokyo government failed to provide reasonable explanation why the order was necessary and on what criteria it was based.
He concluded that the order was illegal because there was no particular need to issue the order that disadvantaged the plaintiff.
But the judge also said all experts consulted by the government authorities acknowledged the need for such an order, and there were no precedents that Tokyo officials could refer to.
He turned down the plaintiff's demand for damages and rejected its argument that the order was unconstitutional.