Hello all,

I am new to the board and was hoping you more experienced people might be able to help me out.

My wife has been "penciled in" to be stationed in Yokosuka in the dental corps in August or September.  We have not received any orders yet, but we do have an email confirmation from her captain that this is where she will be assigned.  First off, does anyone know how firm of a decision this is and whether assignments typically change after an email is sent?  We are really looking forward to living in Japan and from what we have heard, we got about the best assignment she could have gotten.

That said, I am a lawyer in Texas.  I have tried scouring the internet and haven't been able to understand the laws about working in Japan.  As a military spouse, what type of visa will I need to get?  Does that allow me to work anywhere in Japan?  I understand I can not work as a lawyer advising on Japanese law since I have not taken their bar.  But with the entry visa you get as a military spouse, are you limited to base work?  Do you know of any resources to see about other job permits.

I would like to explore the possibilities of what I can do in Japan.  Things I have considered doing are (1) working for an American firm in Japan advising on American law; (2) doing some independent contractor work for the government (on base or not); (3) teaching American law at a Japanese or American university; or possibly (4) teaching English to Japanese students.  I would like to be out in the community, learn the language and culture, and use that to advance my career in law when we return to the States.

Is there even a need for lawyers on base or does JAG handle pretty much everything?  I have not seen a post for an attorney on US Jobs.  Does anyone have any helpful tips for obtaining some job other than teaching English that I might be able to do.  Like I said before, I am really confused at this point on the visa and work permit requirements to do anything.

Please help.  Thank you so much for reading my long post and for whatever help you might offer.

Robert

I get all new government job postings in Japan by email daily via http://federalgovernmentjobs.us/

There have been a number of legal jobs at Yokosuka recently. I suggest you register and see what pops up. In the meantime, do a search on usajobs.com to see what's out there right now.

Good luck.

I belive SOFA status only allows you to work on base not sure about off base. You might want to check Japan's Status of Forces Agreement. you might have to fill out some forms to work off base.

As far as anything leagal between the base and Japan thats all handled by JAG and/or base commanders office and the Japanesse goverment. No need for american lawers really.Everything eles is pretty much spelled out in the SOFA agreement.

Since you have a degree I would see what DOD's schools require to teach or how quickly you could get a teaching certifiacte. Another option would be to contact AAFes/exchange seirvices regional office (its located in Okinawa on Camp Foster) and see if there is a job there for something legal. Also maybe just send in a resume to the commisary and see if you get a bite. Just because they dont post a job doesnt mean there isnt one. Or there is the Red Cross out here and also the USO. The USO might actually be a good place you for. They often have celebrities come to and through Japan. You might be able to land some sort of contract negotiation with them or something.

I wouldnt count on teaching at one of the american Universities here but if you want to look into it I know there is the Univesity of Maryland and Phoenix. You can find Japanesse schools to teach english at. They put adds in the base paper for native english speakers.Other than that Im not sure if there is too much eles out here for your career.

I hope I have helped alittle. And if I were you I would try to contact places like the Red Cross,USO ect directly as they dont tend to put out Job listings all that often but they still might have a place for you.

Dear Robert,

I was a paralegal (Legalman Rating) in the U.S. Navy JAG Corps for over 20 years, so I have some experience about what you're asking. There was a husband here a few years ago in Yokosuka who was in the same situation as yours, except his spouse was a civilian employee. He tried to hang his shingle out and do some military justice defending sailors, but it didn't go too well for one reason or another which I would prefer not to allude to in this forum as being unprofessional. The Base Legal Office will make you do a formal request for On-Base Employment/Solicitation, just like anyone else has to do who runs a business out of their home. Contact me when you get here and I will explain some of the problems he encountered to you face-to-face. He ended up doing corporate law advice for a Japanese company in Tokyo and commuting back and forth daily. Eventually his wife decided to transfer back to the states so he could keep his legal career intact. Good luck and please don't hesitate to contact me when you arrive.

Mike Applegate
LNCM(SW), USN, Ret.
DoDDS Teacher
mikeapplegate@hotmail.com

Re: Your wife being "penciled in." Yes, that can change. An email from her captain has no weight whatsoever. You can start getting ready, but don't sell the house or give up your day job just yet. Even once the orders are issued, they are subject to change but at least they will be more certain than the "promise" you have right now.

You will not need any kind of visa to enter the country. You will be entering the country as part of the SOFA agreement: Status of Forces Agreement, which is a bilateral treaty between US and Japan. SOFA is what gives you status here, with a great deal of protections you would not otherwise have. Before you come, you will have written orders, country clearance & medical screening. All that, plus your ID card, is what you'll use to get past Immigration at the airport. Do NOT get a visa; it would only complicate things later since all visas require to leave sooner or later, but SOFA is open-ended.

There are restrictions on working off base, but they are not absolute. You'll need permission from the base for outside employment, and maybe a work permit too. There are probably existing discussion on this forum that talk about that. Search & browse, but ask more questions if you don't find what you need after due diligence. Rea's employment suggestions seem pretty good. There may also be on base contractors that want legal experts in Japan, though I've never heard of any. If you can figure out which companies are working on base (there are many) and contact them directly, maybe some of them would find merit in having a lawyer over here. It's a long-shot, but it might work.

Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to make a reply to this post. Your information has been extremely helpful.

To Thai Guy, that's a little discouraging about the penciled in part. We have been really looking forward to the move and have started doing as much as possible to get ready for the move, including starting to learn Japanese. I'm hoping that it is somewhat permanent. Have you had problems with them changing stations on you in the past or heard other horror stories about that?

To Mike Applegate, thanks for the help. I would love to sit down with you when we get there to hear the stories. Thank you so much for the offer. I really don't need to practice law while there, but it is something that I can do that I was hoping there was a need for. It would be nice to be able to do some legal work, but I understand it may not be possible. Any advice would be helpful.

Thank you all again.

There are a couple of US universities in the area that you may inquire about teaching at if that interests you. Temple University in Tokyo in the Ginza area has a masters law program. There are several universities on the bases that I am sure that would enjoy someone teaching law classes. Just an idea.

Thai Guy,

Sounds like you were right on the money with the email meaning nothing. My wife just got an email from the captain saying Yokosuka was no longer an option, but that Iwakuni was. I saw from the posts in the Iwakuni section that you are there. I wonder how my job search would change if we were to go there? Any insight would be great. Thanks for the help.

Robert