OSAKA (TR) – The Osaka District Court on Friday ruled in favor of former Osaka mayor Toru Hashimoto in a libel suit against a publisher over an article appearing in tabloid Shukan Bunshun (May 30, 2013) that claimed he received adult entertainment in a red-light district, reports the Sankei Shimbun (April 8).
The Osaka District Court ordered publisher Bungeisha, which publishes the magazine, to pay 2.2 million yen in compensation for an article that said the former mayor received sex services courtesy of the management association of the Tobita Shinchi brothel quarter while he was employed as a legal adviser.
“There is no substantial reason to believe that it is the truth,” said presiding judge Kae Kanaji. The judge added that the article is defamatory and degrades the social standing of the former politician.
Hashimoto had sought 11 million yen in compensation.
Bungeisha is considering filing an appeal.
Prior to entering politics in 2007, Hashimoto practiced corporate and entertainment law.