Pioneering the Field of Fashion Law in Japan as a Lawyer, Building on a Career in the Fashion Industry

Alumna Miyuki Ebisawa (Graduate of the Faculty of Law)

2019/03/29

Miyuki Ebisawa / Lawyer and Fashion Editor

Graduated from the Department of Law, Faculty of Law in 1998. In the same year, she joined the Ministry of Home Affairs (now the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications). In 1999, she changed careers to work for Takarajimasha, Inc., joining the editorial department of the magazine "SPRiNG." In 2003, she moved to the UK and studied under stylist Marco Matysik in London. After returning to Japan in 2004, she began working as a freelance fashion editor. In 2012, she entered Hitotsubashi University Law School. In 2016, she completed her training at the Legal Training and Research Institute of the Supreme Court of Japan (69th term) and was registered as a lawyer (Daini Tokyo Bar Association). After working at Cocone Corporation, she joined Hayashi & Co. Law Offices in 2017. In 2018, she established "fashionlaw.tokyo" ( fashionlaw.tokyo | Legal Consultation Service for Fashion Professionals ), a legal consultation service for people in the fashion industry.

- Ms. Ebisawa, you have built a unique career, from graduating from the Faculty of Law to becoming a national civil servant, then a fashion magazine editor, and now a lawyer handling legal issues in the fashion industry. What was your student life like, and what kind of future did you envision for yourself back then?

Ebisawa: I attended local public schools until junior high, and I became a part of Keio University starting from the Girls' Senior High School (hereafter, Girls' High School). Perhaps because I grew up in a so-called "strict household" with a father who was a civil servant, I had a vague desire to become an independent woman even back then. When I entered the school with that in mind, I found myself surrounded by truly unique friends, and my high school life in that free-spirited atmosphere was just incredibly fun every day (laughs). At the Girls' High School, there were plenty of events like the drama festival in June and the Kannasai festival in October, as well as Halloween and Christmas parties. There were even times when students threw birthday parties for teachers in the classroom.

I loved fashion from that time and was what you would call an "Olive girl" back then. As for fashion magazines, besides "Olive," I was also an avid reader of "CUTiE," which I would later become involved in editing. At the Girls' High School drama festival, I was in charge of costumes and would sometimes stay up all night making the main character's outfit. When it was time to think about higher education, I even considered going to a fashion vocational school instead of a university, but my parents persuaded me to give up the idea.

- At university, you studied in the Department of Law at the Faculty of Law.

Ebisawa: I reconsidered and thought that, to be an independent woman, the best path was to become a civil servant like my father, so I entered the Department of Law at the Faculty of Law. My seminar was with Professor Hisao Kato in criminal law, but I wasn't really thinking about a legal profession. Instead, after enrolling, I joined the dance club I had admired since my Girls' High School days and spent all my time dancing from morning till night. So, as you can imagine (laughs), I got a completely late start on job hunting for private companies and only began studying for the National Civil Service Examination, Category I (now the career-track examination) in my third year.

- Why did you choose the Ministry of Home Affairs (now the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications)?

Ebisawa: I had experience living in rural areas due to my father's job transfers and had an interest in local administration from the start. Also, the people I met from the Ministry of Home Affairs during my official visits were all so wonderful that my desire to be like them and work with them grew stronger. After joining the ministry, I underwent six months of training at the National Personnel Authority and was then assigned to the Gifu Prefectural Government. At the prefectural office, the staff took very good care of me. They even created opportunities for me to speak directly with the heads of municipalities to broaden my knowledge. Although it was only for about a year, I was able to learn the general workings and system of local government.

- But then, you suddenly switched careers to become a fashion magazine editor.

Ebisawa: Gifu is a region where the textile industry has traditionally thrived. As I saw once-vibrant shopping arcades become streets of shuttered storefronts through my work, the feeling that I really wanted to be involved in the fashion industry grew stronger within me... When I found out that Takarajimasha was recruiting fashion magazine editors, I applied immediately. My superiors at the Ministry of Home Affairs strongly tried to persuade me to stay, but my mind was already made up. They advised me, "You can stay in your current job and be involved in fashion as a hobby," but if I was going to do it, I wanted to immerse myself completely in the world of fashion. Even now, looking back, I feel I did a disservice to my seniors at the ministry and the people at the Gifu Prefectural Government.

I didn't tell my parents either; I just called them to inform them after I had already changed jobs. A little while later, my father sent me a very long fax. To be honest, I was too scared to read it and still haven't. I feel like I would start crying if I did.

- How was it starting over as an editor in a completely different field?

Ebisawa: I worked frantically as a new editor. I spent my training period in the editorial department of "CUTiE," a magazine I had been an avid reader of, and was then assigned to the "SPRiNG" editorial department. At the time, "SPRiNG" was a bi-weekly magazine, so we faced the chaos of final proofreading once every two weeks. The work was hard, but every day felt as exciting as the days leading up to a school festival. In the beginning, photoshoots with models, photographers, and stylists were a fresh experience, but over time, the desire to "select the clothes myself, which are the most important element in fashion photography," grew stronger. I did some research and found that fashion editors in places like Paris and London handle everything, including selecting clothes, from a director's standpoint, and I wanted to work that way too. So, I decided to move to the UK to train as a stylist.

- That was quite a bold decision.

Ebisawa: It was. But I'm the type of person who, once I think "I want to do this!", can't see anything else (laughs), so I was personally very excited. I was already familiar with London from a short study abroad trip during my Girls' High School days, and I had studied English intensively at that time, so I wasn't particularly worried. In London, through an acquaintance from the fashion college I attended, I was able to become an assistant to stylist Marco Matysik and worked on projects like ad production for the luxury department store Harrods.

- A year later, you returned to Japan and started working as a freelance fashion editor.

Ebisawa: I worked as a freelancer for about seven or eight years. I handled direction and styling for women's fashion magazines and advertisements. While doing that work, I often found myself thinking about issues like copyright for photographs, as well as labor environment problems in the fashion industry such as long working hours and harassment.

The copyright issue with photographs is that when a photo taken for a magazine is repurposed for a poster or advertisement, permission is obtained from the photographer who took it, and a secondary use fee is paid. However, a photograph is created with the involvement of many staff members, including not just the photographer but also editors, stylists, and makeup artists. Under the current system, as a general rule, no one other than the photographer is recognized as the copyright holder. As an editor, I had doubts about this. This is because there are photoshoots led by editors and stylists like myself. Furthermore, there are often cases where the secondary use fee itself is not paid. The fashion industry has a long-standing culture of verbal agreements without formal written contracts, so it was not uncommon for the terms of a job, including fees and other payments, to be left ambiguous, not just secondary use fees.

That's when I suddenly remembered that I was a graduate of the "Department of Law, Faculty of Law" (laughs). That was the catalyst for my career change to become a lawyer.

- So you decided to become a lawyer yourself to tackle these legal issues?

Ebisawa: Yes. I worked as a contributing editor for "Elle Japon," where I was in charge of everything from project proposals to editorial direction, until March 2011. In April, I started studying to get into law school, and the following April, I enrolled at Hitotsubashi University Law School. There are students who study at law school while working, but I quit my job completely to focus on studying for the bar exam. Even so, I struggled quite a bit with studying after such a long time away from it. I failed the bar exam on my first try. I managed to pass on the second attempt. I registered as a lawyer in 2016 and first took a job as an in-house lawyer at Cocone Corporation, a company that plans and produces dress-up apps and other products. It's an IT company, but it's an interesting one that positions itself as an "apparel" company, and I was also entrusted with public relations work. The work itself was interesting, but I thought that to build a career as a lawyer, it would be best to join a law firm, so I joined my current firm. I am gaining a wide range of experience as a lawyer, focusing on corporate law cases.

- I hear you are aiming to become a lawyer specializing in fashion law, the legal issues related to fashion.

Ebisawa: During my time as a fashion editor, I always thought it would be great if there were a place like a sanctuary where people in the fashion industry could feel free to consult about various legal problems. When I mentioned this to my superior at the firm, they said, "Why don't you create it right now?" So, with the firm's cooperation, I launched "fashionlaw.tokyo" this January. I have already handled many consultations regarding issues like non-payment and counterfeit products, and I hope it will become a hub for spreading the field of fashion law, which is not yet established in Japan. Also, I am gradually resuming my work as a fashion editor. Being involved in the fashion scene as a creator is still appealing to me, and I believe that as a legal professional, knowing the current scene firsthand has great advantages.

- Finally, do you have a message for current Keio students?

Ebisawa: To me, "Keio University equals freedom." From the Girls' High School through university, I feel that I was nurtured in a free environment that valued each individual's personality. And my greatest fortune was being blessed with many wonderful encounters. My friends from the Girls' High School are people I still go out to eat with. When I meet up with my university seminar classmates, who are now active in various fields, we can interact with the same vibe as we did in our student days. It is because of these numerous encounters—with people from the former Ministry of Home Affairs, the Gifu Prefectural Government where I worked for a year, and my peers from my time as a legal apprentice—that I am who I am today. I think it would be great for current Keio students to trust their intuition and freely pursue what they want to do. Intuition is surprisingly reliable. If you follow your intuition and throw yourself into something, you will have good encounters, and I'm sure good results will follow.

- Thank you for your time today.

Photography: Shinji Hizume

This article was published in the "Jukuin Sanmyaku" (Keio University alumni Network) section of "Juku" 2018 AUTUMN (No. 300).

*Affiliations, job titles, etc., are as of the time of the interview.