DETROIT (Feb. 10, 2012) - Wayne State University Law School is pleased to host a lecture by Judge Yasuhisa Kurachi of the Kobe District Court in Japan. Kurachi will discuss Japanese proceedings from investigation to prosecution. The lecture will take place at 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 15, in the third floor faculty lounge of the Law School.

Judge Kurachi observed criminal procedure from September-December 2011 at the Third Judicial Circuit Court of Michigan, including arraignments on warrants, preliminary examinations, and charging processes by a prosecuting attorney, he said. "Throughout my research, I noticed that the proceedings from investigation to prosecution of the Third Circuit Court were totally different from those of Japan," he said. "So, at this time, I'd like to introduce Japanese proceedings from investigation to prosecution compared with those of Wayne County."

Judge Kurachi is here as part of a special arrangement between Wayne Law, the Third Circuit Court of Michigan and the Supreme Court of Japan. The arrangement, which began in 2007, provides for a judge from the Japanese judicial system to visit Michigan to research and study the American judicial system, with a special emphasis on Michigan trial courts. He visited Wayne Law in October 2011.

Judge Kurachi has served on the Kobe District Court as a judge since 2008. He received his training as a legal apprentice from the Legal Training and Research Institute of the Supreme Court of Japan. He received a bachelor of law degree from the University of Tokyo.

"We are pleased to welcome Judge Kurachi back to the Law School for this lecture," said Wayne Law Dean Robert M. Ackerman. "This leading Japanese jurist will offer an interesting legal perspective to our students."

The lecture is free and open to the public. Lunch will be provided. For more information, please contact the Law School Dean's Office at 313-577-3933.

Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering more than 400 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 32,000 students.

For more information about Wayne State University Law School, visit law.wayne.edu.