With multiple high court rulings that were handed down in 2024 calling Japan's ban on same-sex marriage "unconstitutional" and demands from business organizations that the government allow married couples to choose their surnames, it appears that Japan is slowly but steadily moving toward a society welcoming more choices related to marriage. Below is a selection of news articles and opinion pieces highlighting these changes.

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All Japanese will be 'Sato' by 2531 if Japan keeps same-surname marriage system: research

TOKYO -- All Japanese people will have the last name "Sato" by the year 2531 if the country continues to require couples to choose either the husband's or wife's last name upon marriage, a simulation by a Tohoku University research center has shown. Full story.

Editorial: Japan gov't must legalize same-sex marriage after yet another high court ruling

Last month, the Tokyo High Court ruled that Japanese law, which does not recognize same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional. This was the second ruling of its kind from an appellate court, following a similar verdict from the Sapporo High Court in March this year. Full story.

57% in Japan for, 22% against selective surname system for married couples: Mainichi poll

TOKYO -- Some 57% of people in Japan were "for" a selective surname system for married couples, far exceeding the 22% who were "against" it, the latest Mainichi Shimbun survey has revealed. Full story.

'Who are you?' Japan business lobby pushes gov't to allow spouses to keep original surnames

TOKYO -- A proposal to let spouses choose to hold different surnames is gaining momentum in Japan's business world, where internationalization is showing the limits of the country's uniquely strict rules. Full story.

'Having choice' is the point: Randstad exec on same-sex marriage, surname system in Japan

TOKYO -- Jos Schut, Chief Human Resources Officer of the Japanese arm of world-leading employment services company Randstad, is an avid supporter of sexual minorities' human rights, for both professional and personal reasons. As a global company executive and an openly gay man, he believes that excluding any minority group only harms business as well as society. Full story.

Editorial: Japan will never be truly equal without same-sex marriage, surname choice

There are people whose dignity is being trampled on daily because their marriage, their commitment to someone they love, is not legally recognized in Japan. And many of these couples feel that they are being discriminated against. Full story.

74.1% of male, 89.8% of female higher ed students in Japan favor selective surnames: survey

TOKYO -- More than 80% of students in Japan were in favor of a selective surname system for married couples, a recent survey by an advertising company has revealed. Full story.

In rare move, Japan's top business lobby urges gov't to introduce selective surname system

TOKYO -- The Japan Business Federation on June 10 released a proposal urging the government to "promptly submit to" the Diet a bill to revise the Civil Code to introduce a system where married couples can choose to keep their maiden names or take their spouses' last names amid more women working for increasingly globalized businesses. Full story.

Japan's same surname law could be ruled unconstitutional: ex-Supreme Court justice

TOKYO -- Japan's unique Civil Code provisions mandating joint surnames for married couples could eventually be ruled unconstitutional as courts' understanding of discrimination shifts, former Supreme Court Justice Ryuko Sakurai stated in a May 29 lecture hosted by the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren). Full story.