Japanese ex-princess Mako’s husband Kei Komuro passes New York bar exam on 3rd attempt

Komuro, who works at a New York law firm, passed the state bar exam in July
The couple registered their marriage in Tokyo and took off to the US city last November

Japan

Associated Press

Published: 11:30am, 22 Oct 2022

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The man who married a former Japanese princess has passed the New York bar exam, defying detractors back home who had criticised their romance.

Kei Komuro’s name is on the list of those who passed the July New York state bar exam, which was posted on Friday on the New York State Board of Law Examiners website.

Komuro’s engagement to former princess Mako, announced in 2017, prompted a widespread public outcry, mostly on social media and in the tabloids. One reason was a financial problem of Komuro’s mother, although that’s since been resolved.

Japan appears modern on the surface, but values about family and women are rooted in feudal practices. Many Japanese are also often jealous of people who study abroad or get jobs with international companies.

He’s ‘irreplaceable’: Japan’s Mako, husband describe their affections

Komuro, 31, a graduate of Fordham University law school, has a job at a New York law firm, and has been living in New York with Mako, a museum curator.

Komuro failed the bar in his two previous attempts. It’s common for people to pass after multiple attempts. Of the 9,609 candidates for the latest exam, the passing rate was 66 per cent at 6,350 people, including Komuro.

The couple did without any fancy wedding, registered their marriage and took off to New York in November last year. They met while attending Tokyo’s International Christian University a decade ago.

The Japanese tabloids had stalked the couple in New York, taking snapshots and commenting snidely about Mako’s casual clothes, which struck a contrast with the usual staid formal wear of Japan’s imperial family.

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Japan’s ex-princess Mako and husband Kei Komuro arrive in New York to start new life

Other princesses have married commoners and left the palace, as there is only male succession in the imperial family. But the reaction to Komuro and Mako was especially frenzied, much of it focusing on whether he would be able to support his wife.

Speculation has now moved to how much money he might be earning as a lawyer, instead of when he might be getting fired.

Reports said Komuro’s shaky standing will improve with the imperial family, the couple may move from Hell’s Kitchen to a ritzier neighbourhood and Komuro’s mom may move in with them.

Japan’s Princess Mako finally marries university sweetheart Kei Komuro

Mako, who turns 31 on Sunday, is the niece of Emperor Naruhito, who also married a commoner, Masako. Masako, a Harvard graduate, suffered depression in the cloistered imperial life. Former emperor Akihito, Naruhito’s father, was the first member of the imperial family to marry a commoner.

The family holds no political power but serves as a symbol of the nation, attending ceremonial events and visiting disaster zones.

When Komuro returned from the United States last year to marry Mako, they were reunited for the first time in three years.

Mako said then: “He is someone I cannot do without.”

Komuro echoed her devotion: “I want to live the only life I have with the person I love.”

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