In April 2008, Fukuda announced a plan to create a consumer affairs agency in the next fiscal year to unify administrative oversight of consumer affairs. In line with his proposal, the panel, chaired by Gakushuin University Prof. Takeshi Sasaki, discussed expected jurisdiction and responsibility. The panel is expected to finish the report possibly in early June and submit it to Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda.
From an article of the Japan Times on 20th May 2008:
The consumer affairs agency envisaged by the prime minister should be empowered to confiscate proceeds from illegal business practices so they can be used to help compensate the victims, according to a proposal Monday by a panel of experts examining consumer-related policies.
The consumer administration promotion council, set up in February by Yasuo Fukuda, who has pledged to promote “consumer-oriented” policies, is expected to present a report containing the idea for the agency possibly later this month. [...] The agency would also propose laws for compensating consumers who have suffered as a result of illicit business practices, according to the draft document. The agency should consider formulating laws to seize the profits of such businesses as well as to allow the government to seek damages from such businesses on behalf of victims, the document says.
From the Yomiuri on 23rd May 2008:
In the draft, discussed at a meeting and unveiled Wednesday, the panel of experts also proposed a new law that would enable the government to demand compensation from scammers on behalf of consumers who have become victims of illegal business practices.
[...] Toward this end, the panel suggested the agency enhance relief measures for victims, such as seizing profits from businesses that engage in illegal practices. The panel also proposed a new law that would ensure complaints are handled swiftly to prevent bad practices from spreading.
regulations
For recovering illegal benefits gained by organized crimes, the Act for Payment of Recovery Benefit was already enacted in 2006. By the law, victims of specific crimes can get back their damages from benefits that investigation agencies confiscated from gangsters.
However, the law does not entitle the government to seek civil penalty in courts or seek compensation for those harmed by the unfair or deceptive practices. Above report recommends to establish the regime.
OECD report
The CCP of the OECD held a public workshop in April 2005 on a issue of dispute resolution and redress. in the conference, the Background Report was prepared; the report examines existing mechanisms to resolve disputes and obtain compensation for consumers in OECD member countries, and analyses how these mechanisms operate in practice, including in cross-border cases.
The report underlines the usefulness of Government-obtained redress:
The authority of government consumer protection agencies to recover monies wrongfully obtained by a trader for return directly to consumers can be an important means to alleviate consumer injury and to deter wrong-doing. Mechanisms for government-obtained redress can be particularly useful in cases of fraudulent or deceptive practices affecting large numbers of consumers, especially in cross-border situations. Due to the complexity of such cases, the costs to any individual consumer of taking private legal action will usually far outweigh the harm suffered. As government consumer protection agencies have at their disposal investigative and other enforcement powers that are not available to private litigants, they are
often in a unique position to tackle such cases and secure compensation for consumer victims. At present, government consumer protection agencies in only nine respondent countries have the authority to secure monetary redress for consumers. Proposals to introduce such powers have been made in a further two countries.
