People attend the Tokyo Rainbow Pride 2023 Parade in Tokyo on April 23 to show support for members of the LGBT community. (Photo: AFP)
A Japanese family court has ruled in favor of a transgender man seeking to officially change his gender identity without undergoing gender confirmation surgery, local media reported Thursday.
The court in the Shizuoka region ruled that Gen Suzuki can officially register as a man on his family registry without having a surgical procedure, a legal requirement in the country.
Local media said Wednesday's ruling was the first of its kind in Japan.
"I hope that in the future we will see a society where sexual diversity is only natural," Suzuki, 48, told national broadcaster NHK.
"I think we can say the society is definitely changing," said Suzuki, who lives with his common-law wife but is officially registered as a woman.
The ruling was published online Thursday by a group raising money for and awareness of the lawsuit.
Those who wish to change their identity on official documents in Japan must appeal to a family court and meet criteria that include having undergone gender confirmation surgery.
In July, Japan's Supreme Court ruled in favor of a transgender bureaucrat who sued the government over access to female toilets at work -- the top court's first on working conditions for LGBTQ individuals.
The court found that a decision barring the woman from using nearby toilets and forcing her to use others two floors from her office was "extremely lacking in validity."
