Chinese prosecutors formally charge a Japanese businessman with espionage in a case that has chilled the Japanese business community; a Hong Kong court sentences a man to eight weeks in prison for covering his ears and remaining seated while the national anthem was played at a sports event; Japan's Liberal Democratic Party schedules its party leadership election for September 27 - an event that will determine who is Japan's next prime minister; a South Korean court refuses to hand down the death penalty to the man convicted of killing two persons and injuring twelve in a random attack at a department store; a Taiwan court convicts eight active-duty military officers of spying for China and sentences them to up to 13 years in prison.

China's Ministry of Civil Affairs proposes to make marriage registration more convenient; Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal upholds the convictions of seven pro-democracy activists for participating in a peaceful march in 2019; Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announces he will step down as head of his party and therefore as prime minister; South Korea's government says it will help medical schools cope with an ordered surge in new admissions; Taiwanese law enforcement agencies conduct a series of raids in response to financial crimes.

China's judicial organs and Ministry of Education mark international Children’s Day with reports and guidelines about efforts to protect children’s rights; a Hong Kong court convicts 14 democrats of attempting to subvert state power by holding an unofficial primary election; the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights issues a report about rights problems in Japan; South Korea's Supreme Court upholds the conviction of a journalist who published the name and photo of an accused child abuser; Taiwan's legislature passes controversial bills intended to strengthen its power over the executive branch, but legal hurdles loom. Read more.

Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan was reported missing days after her scheduled release from prison; the governments of China and Hong Kong rejected Britain’s charge that three men in London were assisting Hong Kong’s intelligence services; a Japanese court ordered a company to compensate a female employee for indirectly discriminating against women in its housing benefits policy; a South Korean court said doctors and medical students lack standing to file an administrative lawsuit against the government’s plan to increase medical school enrollments; members of Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan brawled on the chamber floor after the Kuomintang and Taiwan People’s Party tried to force a vote on bills that would increase the legislative body’s power over the executive branch.

China's Supreme People’s Court issues rules for determining whether to give prisoners a sentence reduction or parole release if they have failed to pay fines that were part of their sentence; Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal says courts have no jurisdiction over the city’s National Security Committee; Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announces that 49 countries have joined the effort to craft voluntary international rules for artificial intelligence; South Korea’s legislature orders an independent investigation of the fatal 2022 Halloween stampede in Seoul; a Taipei courts hears final arguments in the case of a transgender man trying to legally change his gender without undergoing surgery.

The Chinese government orders Apple to remove WhatsApp and Threads from its app store in China; a Hong Kong judge agrees to hear arguments about the constitutionality of new restrictions on journalists accessing the government’s vehicles registry; a Japanese court rejects the claim by death row inmates that same-day notification of execution is unconstitutional; South Korea's government offers to compromise on the pace of increasing medical school admissions in order to end a two-month doctors' strike; Taiwan’s Vice President-elect Hsiao Bi-khim expresses confidence that Taiwan will soon achieve 50 percent female representation in its legislature.

A Chinese court for the first time sentences a domestic abuser to prison for violating a constraining order; Hong Kong's legislature unanimously approves a national security law that imposes severe penalties for treason, insurrection, theft of state secrets, sabotage, and external interference; a Japanese district court rejects the claims of some mercury pollution victims; South Korea suspends the licenses of two doctors as it tries to end a month-long strike by interns and residents; Taiwan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare offers proposals for reforming the foster care and adoption system following the death of a 1-year-old from alleged abuse.