The government said Tuesday it will appoint lawyer Chiharu Saiguchi, a former vice chairman of the Tokyo Bar Association, to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Takehisa Fukazawa.

The government selected the successor to Fukazawa, who is retiring Jan. 4, from among lawyers recommended by the Japan Federation of Bar Associations. Fukazawa was a lawyer before he was appointed a justice in September 2000.

Saiguchi, a 65-year-old expert on corporate and bankruptcy laws, served on bankruptcy law panels of the Japan Bar Association and the Justice Ministry's Legislative Council. He is a graduate of Chuo University in Tokyo and was admitted to the bar in 1966.