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法科大学院 (houkadaigakuin) Japanese meaning: law school | Kotomora

法ほう科か大だい学がく院いん

ほ

う

か

だ

い

が

く

い

ん

Meanings

1

Refers specifically to the Japanese graduate-level law school system introduced in 2004, modeled after the U.S. law school system. Not a general term for any law school.

彼かれは法ほう科か大だい学がく院いんを卒そつ業ぎょうして、司し

法ほう

試し

験けん

に

合ごう

格かく

し

た

。

He graduated from law school and passed the bar exam.

Kanji

法method, law, rule
科department, course, section
大large, big
学study, learning, science
院Inst., institution, temple

Don't confuse with

法ほう学がく部ぶN3
法学部 is an undergraduate faculty of law, while 法科大学院 is a graduate-level professional law school.

Built from

法ほう科か+大だい学がく院いん

Etymology

Compound of 法科 (law course) + 大学院 (graduate school). The term was officially adopted in the early 2000s with the establishment of the Japanese law school system.