To investigate the status of ethics education in Japanese medical schools, a self-administered questionnaire was sent to all 80 medical schools in 1995. Sixty-four (80.0%) medical schools responded, of which 60 answered they offer or will offer courses in which medical ethics topics are taught. Most classes are compulsory and are held before bedside teaching begins. Nineteen medical schools have separete medical ethics courses, and the others have medical humanities courses in which medical ethics are taught as part of the course. The respondents rated “the physician's duty, ” “informed consent, ” and “patients' rights” as the three most important topics that should be taught to medical students.