International Family Law – Navigating Japan–U.S. Family Law

International Family Law examines how family law disputes are handled across different legal systems, cultures, and jurisdictions. Through in-depth conversations with leading international practitioners, the series explores forum selection, property and support regimes, child custody, enforcement challenges, and conflicts of law, with each discussion grounded in practical comparisons to California family law.In this episode, Makiko Mizuuchi of Legal Profession Corporation CastGlobal explores international family law disputes between Japan and the United States. The conversation covers forum selection and jurisdictional strategy, child custody frameworks and the concept of sole custody post-divorce, international child abduction and Hague Convention proceedings, relocation and move-away standards, marital property and asset division, support obligations, and the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. Alphonse Provinziano of Provinziano & Associates moderates the conversation by drawing comparisons to California law, contextualizing cultural and procedural differences within Japanese family courts, and framing cross-border enforcement realities for U.S.-based practitioners.