Meantime the Constitution had been granted in February, 1889, and the Imperial Diet convoked in 1890. The opponents of the Code insisted on its revision. At the session of 1892 a bill was introduced in the Lower House to postpone the operation of the Code with a view to its revision. After several warm debates the bill was passed by the Representatives. The measure was also adopted by the Upper House and the operation of the Code was in consequence postponed until the 31st of December, 1896. In March, 1893, a Law Commission was established by Imperial edict. The commissioners comprised members of both Houses, professors of the Imperial University, members of the Bench and the Bar and leading merchants. Professors Hozumi, Tomii, and Ume were appointed a subcommittee to prepare a draft for the discussion of the commissioners. Although the commissioners were appointed to revise the Code of 1890 they in fact recast it. In March, 1896, the report of the commissioners on Book I, “General Provisions,” Book II, “Rights in Rem,” and Book III, “Rights in Personam,” was submitted to the Diet and was adopted with a few unimportant modifications. On April 28th of the same year these books were promulgated as laws. Books IV and V on “Family Relations,” and “Successions,” were enacted as law under Act 9, in June, 1898, the whole to go into effect on the 16th of July, 1898. This is the existing Civil Code of Japan.
II.
The Arrangement of the Code. — In the Institutes of Justinian the Roman law is arranged under three divisions: I, Jus Personarum; II, Jus Rerum; III, Jus Actionum — (Just. Inst., I Tit. 3). This classification is followed with more or less modification by the French and other continental codes. The French Civil Code is arranged in three Books. Book I, “Des personnes,” treats of the enjoyment and privation of private rights, domicile, absence, marriage, divorce, paternity and filiation, minority, majority, paternal power, guardianship, etc. Book II, “Des biens et différentes modifications de la propriété,” treats of the distinctions of movables and immovables, different species of ownership or rights of property, usufruct, use and habitation, servitude, etc. Book III, “Des différentes manières dont on acquiert la propriété,” treats of succession, testaments, contracts, implied contracts and torts, marriage contracts, sale, exchange, hiring, mandates, agency, letting, suretyship, mortgage, privilege, prescription, etc.
