Approximately 63 doctors in Japan are suing Google for failing to remove negative and racist comments from their business listings on Google Maps.
The group is seeking damages of 1.4 million yen, or about $9,000, claiming these reviews are baseless and harmful and that Google has not adequately addressed their concerns.
AFP reported that the lawsuit, the first of its kind in Japan, was filed because the tech giant failed to take action against the discriminatory reviews.
The doctors argue that the structure of Japan’s national healthcare system, where patients do not pay the majority of treatment costs, limits their ability to meet all patient demands. This often leads to negative feedback when unnecessary treatments are rightly refused.
Filed Thursday, the lawsuit highlights a significant challenge for medical professionals in Japan: the inability to respond to or refute defamatory reviews without breaching patient confidentiality. One doctor, speaking on condition of anonymity, described feeling like a “punching bag” for anonymous online critics.
This case highlights broader social issues in Japan, where historical class divisions sometimes influence contemporary society despite legal reforms aiming to mitigate such discrimination.
