In 2006, the Joso appeal rate (the rate of persons who filed Joso appeals (Koso appeal and leapfrog procedure) among persons finally disposed excluding those for whom dismissal of prosecution was decided or a request for formal trials was withdrawn) was 10.7% against judgements by district courts and 5.9% against judgements by summary courts, which were more or less at the same level as the previous year. The number of Koso appeal defendants finally disposed by high courts in 2006 was 9,344, out of which 9,086 were appealed only by the defendant's side, 203 were only by public prosecutors, and 55 were by both sides (Source: Annual Report of Judicial Statistics).
  Table 2-3-1-4 shows the number of persons passed a final disposed in Koso appeal cases by high courts by type of offense in 2006.

Table 2-3-1-4  Number of defendants finally disposed in Koso appeal trials, by type of offense (2006)

  Dismissal of appeal accounted for the largest portion at 62.6%, followed by withdrawal of appeal (21.0%) and original judgment reversed (new judgment) (15.8%).
  Out of the total of 1,490 defendants whose judgments were reversed at high courts, a majority of 790 were due to circumstances after the original judgments, followed by inappropriateness of sentencing with 295 and error in fact-finding with 106. As a result of new judgments, 20 defendants were found not guilty (Source: Annual Report of Statistics on Prosecution).
  In 2006, out of 36 defendants for whom public prosecutors filed Koso appeals against the not-guilty judgments in the first instance, 25 were found guilty (Source: Annual Report of Statistics on Prosecution).
  The Jokoku appeal rate against judgments made by Koso appeal trials (the rate of persons who filed Jokoku appeal among persons finally disposed excluding those for whom dismissal of appeal or dismissal of prosecution was decided or a request for Jokoku appeal was withdrawn) in 2006 was 39.1%, higher than the Joso appeal rate against those of the first instance.
  The Supreme Court made final dispositions on 2,779 defendants of Jokoku appeals (including those whose first instance was carried out by high courts). The breakdown of this number was 2,136 (76.9%) for dismissal of Jokoku appeals, 634 (22.8%) for withdrawal of Jokoku appeals, six for dismissal of prosecution, two for new judgment, and one for reversal and remand (or transfer) (Source: Annual Report of Judicial Statistics).