Software Engineer - Westlaw Japan

Software Engineer - Westlaw Japan

We are seeking a Software Engineer to join the Westlaw Japan team. This role offers a great opportunity to grow your engineering skills while contributing to the evolution of legal research technology in Japan. As part of the Westlaw Japan Product Development Organization, you will work alongside experienced engineers to develop and maintain professional-grade solutions that serve top law firms and legal departments across Japan.

You will contribute to both the current Westlaw Japan platform and the next-generation Westlaw Japan 2.0, building a strong foundation in real-world software development while making a meaningful impact on one of Japan's leading legal research platforms.

This is your chance to accelerate your growth as an engineer and be part of shaping the future of legal technology in Japan.

About the role

In this opportunity as a Software Engineer, you will:

• Develop and modify features across both the current Westlaw Japan platform and the next-generation Westlaw Japan 2.0 under the guidance of senior engineers
• Build an understanding of existing system architecture, internal libraries, and business logic to support 2.0 development
• Develop both front-end and back-end components with attention to performance and security
• Participate in code reviews as a learning opportunity and help contribute to team coding standards
• Identify and resolve defects in the current platform, contributing to improved system stability and reduced maintenance overhead
• Execute on provided designs while proactively suggesting improvements
• Actively participate in Agile ceremonies including sprint planning, stand-ups, and retrospectives
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams including product, QA, and senior engineers to deliver on priorities and deadlines
• Cultivate a growth mindset and continuously develop your technical skill set in a rapidly evolving technology landscape

About you

You're a strong fit for the Software Engineer role, if you have:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or equivalent experience
• Business-level proficiency in both Japanese and English
• 3+ years of hands-on software engineering experience in a professional environment

Required Technical Skills:

• Experience with React and modern frontend technologies
• Practical experience with Java and/or Spring Boot in a production environment
• Experience with either front-end or back-end development, with a willingness to grow across the full stack
• Experience maintaining and modifying existing systems, including reading and understanding legacy codebases
• Proficiency in version control tools such as GitHub

Additional Skills (Plus):

• Basic understanding of relational database concepts and query optimization
• Exposure to CI/CD pipelines and DevOps practices
• Familiarity with XML-based data structures
• Familiarity with AI-assisted development tools, such as Claude or GitHub Copilot, and an interest in using them responsibly to improve development productivity.

Collaboration and Professional Skills:

• Ability to communicate technical concepts clearly within the team
• Collaborative mindset with a willingness to support and learn from colleagues
• Proactive in flagging issues and knowing when to escalate
• Committed to continuous learning and contributing to a positive team culture
• Awareness of ethical considerations in AI development and implementation

What’s in it For You?

• Hybrid Work Model: We’ve adopted a flexible hybrid working environment (2-3 days a week in the office depending on the role) for our office-based roles while delivering a seamless experience that is digitally and physically connected.

• Flexibility & Work-Life Balance: Flex My Way is a set of supportive workplace policies designed to help manage personal and professional responsibilities, whether caring for family, giving back to the community, or finding time to refresh and reset. This builds upon our flexible work arrangements, including work from anywhere for up to 8 weeks per year, empowering employees to achieve a better work-life balance.

• Career Development and Growth: By fostering a culture of continuous learning and skill development, we prepare our talent to tackle tomorrow’s challenges and deliver real-world solutions. Our Grow My Way programming and skills-first approach ensures you have the tools and knowledge to grow, lead, and thrive in an AI-enabled future.

• Industry Competitive Benefits: We offer comprehensive benefit plans to include flexible vacation, two company-wide Mental Health Days off, access to the Headspace app, retirement savings, tuition reimbursement, employee incentive programs, and resources for mental, physical, and financial wellbeing.

• Culture: Globally recognized, award-winning reputation for inclusion and belonging, flexibility, work-life balance, and more. We live by our values: Obsess over our Customers, Compete to Win, Challenge (Y)our Thinking, Act Fast / Learn Fast, and Stronger Together.

• Social Impact: Make an impact in your community with our Social Impact Institute. We offer employees two paid volunteer days off annually and opportunities to get involved with pro-bono consulting projects and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) initiatives.

• Making a Real-World Impact: We are one of the few companies globally that helps its customers pursue justice, truth, and transparency. Together, with the professionals and institutions we serve, we help uphold the rule of law, turn the wheels of commerce, catch bad actors, report the facts, and provide trusted, unbiased information to people all over the world.

About Us

Thomson Reuters informs the way forward by bringing together the trusted content and technology that people and organizations need to make the right decisions. We serve professionals across legal, tax, accounting, compliance, government, and media. Our products combine highly specialized software and insights to empower professionals with the data, intelligence, and solutions needed to make informed decisions, and to help institutions in their pursuit of justice, truth, and transparency. Reuters, part of Thomson Reuters, is a world leading provider of trusted journalism and news.

We are powered by the talents of 26,000 employees across more than 70 countries, where everyone has a chance to contribute and grow professionally in flexible work environments. At a time when objectivity, accuracy, fairness, and transparency are under attack, we consider it our duty to pursue them. Sound exciting? Join us and help shape the industries that move society forward.

As a global business, we rely on the unique backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences of all employees to deliver on our business goals. To ensure we can do that, we seek talented, qualified employees in all our operations around the world regardless of race, color, sex/gender, including pregnancy, gender identity and expression, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, citizen status, veteran status, or any other protected classification under applicable law. Thomson Reuters is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer providing a drug-free workplace.

We also make reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and for sincerely held religious beliefs in accordance with applicable law. More information on requesting an accommodation here.

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More information about Thomson Reuters can be found on thomsonreuters.com.