"Japanese lawyers will call a bureaucrat and ask if something is allowed then give legal advice based on that, " notes Stephen Roith at Clifford Chance, another foreign law office in Japan.

FORBES: Japan's Dirty Secrets

The dispute between Britain and Ecuador exploded when the British Foreign Office, in a letter to Ecuadorian officials, cited a little known law that could temporarily suspend the embassy's diplomatic protection and allow authorities to enter and arrest Assange.

CNN: Julian Assange demands U.S. end WikiLeaks 'witch hunt'

The Home Office was disappointed that the court had found these powers discriminated against foreign nationals but UK law had always distinguished between UK citizens and foreign nationals.

BBC: Policeman