TOKYO (TR) — The Tokyo High Court has dismissed an appeal by a male former student seeking 7 million yen in damages over claims that a female former associate professor at Waseda University used her position of authority to coerce him into a sexual relationship.
In a ruling dated April 28, presiding judge Yoshitaka Ichihara acknowledged that sexual intercourse took place between the pair but concluded there was no evidence of coercion. The decision upholds a prior Tokyo District Court ruling that rejected the plaintiff’s demands, reports Bengoshi.com (May 18)
During the trial, the former professor flatly denied that any sexual relationship had occurred. However, both the district and high courts dismissed her denial, determining that the pair engaged in continuous sexual relations between March 2017 and September 2018.
Despite confirming the sexual relationship, the High Court ruled against the plaintiff on the issue of coercion. Based on text message exchanges and the fact that the male student was over 20 years old at the time — possessing full legal decision-making capacity — the court found that he was not forced into the acts.
During the appeal, the man’s legal team argued that university faculty members have a strict legal obligation not to seduce or engage in sexual relations with students under their supervision, meaning the intercourse itself should be deemed illegal. The High Court rejected this argument.
According to the lawsuit, the man enrolled at Waseda University in 2014, advancing to a master’s program in 2018 and a doctoral program in 2021. He filed the suit in March 2022, alleging his former academic advisor not only coerced him into sex but also subjected him to power harassment, including forcing him to babysit her children.
While the court sided with the former professor, Waseda University – originally named as a co-defendant in the lawsuit – took a different route. In May 2024, the university reached a court-mediated settlement with the former student, officially acknowledging both the sexual relationship and the harassment, and issued a formal apology.
The plaintiff has appealed the High Court’s decision to the Supreme Court.
