| 1908 | Chisso factory built in Minamata village. | |
| 1932 | Chisso begins production of acetaldehyde using mercury catalyst. | |
| 1956 | Official confirmation of Minamata disease | |
| 1957 | Mutual-aid Association of Minamata Disease Patients and their Families formed. | |
| 1959 | Sympathy Agreement between Chisso and the victims. | |
| 1968 | The Government admits officially that Chisso's organic mercury causes Minamata disease. | |
| 1969 | Lawsuit filed in Minamata disease trial ("first trial"). | |
| 1971 | Direct negotiations with Chisso begins staging a sit-in in front of the head office in Tokyo. | |
| 1972 | Plaintiff patients express the desire for a support center for patients and their families. | |
| Calls for a Minamata Disease Center made at the First United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (Stockholm). | ||
| Donations solicited nationwide. | ||
| 1973 | Victims win suit against Chisso. | |
| Compensation Agreement with Chisso by both trial group and direct negotiations group; applied to all certified patients. | ||
| 1974 | Net dividing Minamata Bay from the open sea set up. | |
| Minamata Disease Center completed. Named "Soshisha" (meaning "mutual consideration"). | ||
| Minamata Disease Certification Applicants' Council formed. | ||
| Mushroom factory constructed. Work by patients and others begins there (-1983). | ||
| Collection and analysis of mercury-laden sludge, fish, and shellfish from Minamata Bay. | ||
| 1975 | Exchange of visits with leaders of Canadian Indian Minamata Disease patient group. | |
| Fake patient comment by Sugimura and others, members of Kumamoto Prefectural Assembly. | ||
| 1977 | Beginning of activities as base for uncertified patients' movement. | |
| Minamata Experiential School opened (study and exchanges regarding Minamata disease; now the "Gonzui School"). | ||
| Beginning of sales of low-pesticide citrus fruit grown by Minamata disease patients. | ||
| 1978 | Governmental notification narrowing the certification criteria. | |
| Government begins providing financial support for Chisso by issuing prefectural bonds so that compensation payments continued. | ||
| 1979 | Detsuki Health Center established. Acupuncture, moxibustion, and massage treatments provided. (Separated from Soshisha in 1986) | |
| 1980 | Third lawsuit filed. | |
| 1982 | Minamata Life School opened (free school; study of Minamata disease and organic farming, -1992). | |
| Minamata disease patients moved to the Osaka district file a suit. | ||
| 1983 | Document center completed. Documents related to Minamata disease collected, organized, displayed, loaned, published, etc. | |
| 1986 | Survey of distribution of plants and animals around Minamata Bay shoreline | |
| The 30th anniversary of the official confirmation of Minamata disease. Asian People's Convention was held. | ||
| 1988 | Minamata Disease Museum established. | |
| 1989 | All directors of the Soshisha resign owing to a matter of sales of citrus fruits. | |
| Minamata Disease Patients Alliance formed. | ||
| 1990 | Traveling Exhibition of Minamata Disease Museum held at various places in Japan. (-1994) | |
| Environmental restoration of Minamata Bay (dredging and reclamation of mercury-laden sludge) finished. | ||
| Publication of newsletter begins. | ||
| The Environmental Creation Development Project in Minamata begins. (-1999) | ||
| 1993 | Illustrated Minamata Disease published (bilingual, in both Japanese and English). | |
| 1994 | Citizens' Gatherings to Consider the Recovery of Minamata ("Sorosoro moyainaoshi ba hajimen ba") begin to be held. | |
| 1995 | Cabinet approves "the Final Settlement of Minamata disease." | |
| 1996 | The 40th anniversary of the official confirmation of Minamata disease. MINAMATA Tokyo Exhibition held. | |
| 1997 | Net dividing Minamata Bay removed. | |
| 1998 | Indonesian and Tagalog editions of Illustrated Minamata Disease published. | |
| 2000 | Financial support for Chisso at Government expense begins. | |
| 2001 | Osaka High Court find national and prefectural governments guilty. | |
| Events in conjunction with International Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant held. | ||
| 2002 | Attendance at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg. | |
| 2004 | 08/28 | New Noh play Shiranui performed as an offering on land reclaimed from Minamata Bay; attended by 1,300 people from around the country. |
| 2004 | 10/15 | Supreme Court decides Kansai lawsuit over Minamata disease, recognizes responsibility of national government and Kumamoto Prefecture, orders compensation paid. First Supreme Court decision in a lawsuit over compensation from the national government; clearly recognizes government responsibility. |
| 2005 | 02/20 | Minamata Disease Shiranui Patients' Association (?ishi Toshio, chairman; hereafter "Shiranui Patients' Association") established. |
| 2005 | 10/03 | Fifty members of Shiranui Patients' Association file lawsuit demanding compensation payments from national government, Kumamoto Prefecture, and Chisso ("No More Minamata National Government Compensation Lawsuit"). |
| 2005 | 10/13 | The three prefectures of Kumamoto, Kagoshima, and Niigata begin accepting applications for new health insurance booklets [entitling bearers to treatment for Minamata disease]. |
| 2007 | 04/27 | Twelve uncertified Niigata Minamata disease patients file lawsuit in Niigata District Court against national government, Niigata Prefecture, and Sh?wa Denk?, the company which caused the disease, demanding compensation payments of \12 million each for a total of \144 million ("Third Niigata Minamata Disease Lawsuit"). |
| 2007 | 10/11 | Nine members of victims' Mutual Aid Society file lawsuit against national government, Kumamoto Prefecture, and Chisso, demanding compensation of \16 million to \100 million per person (total \228 million) |
| 2009 | 07/08 | Law for special measures regarding relief for Minamata disease patients and resolution of the Minamata issue (Minamata Disease Special Measures Law) passed. |
| 2010 | 03/15 | Fourth conference on out-of-court settlement in Shiranui Association lawsuit. Kumamoto District Court suggestions include one-time payments of \2.1 million and average monthly payments of \15,000 for medical treatment. |
| 2010 | 05/01 | Prime Minister Hatoyama attends memorial ceremony for victims of Minamata disease; first time for an incumbent prime minister to attend. After the memorial ceremony, acceptance of applications for assistance under the Minamata Disease Special Measures Law begins. |
| 2010 | 12/15 | Environment Minister Matsumoto Ry? approves plan to reorganize Chisso (company split-up plan). |
| 2011 | 01/12 | In its reorganization under the Minamata Disease Special Measures Law, Chisso establishes a new company, "JNC," to continue its regular operations |
| 2011 | 03/25 | Out-of-court settlement ends Shiranui Patients' Association lawsuit ("No More Minamata Kumamoto Lawsuit"). |
| 2012 | 07/30 | Acceptance of applications for benefits under Minamata Disease Special Measures Law ends. |
| 2013 | 04/16 | Full victory in Supreme Court in Mizoguchi lawsuit (which demanded cancellation of the rejection of his late mother's application for certification as Minamata disease patient, and that the court require that she be certified). |
| 2016 | 02/03 | Japan ratified the Minamata Convention on Mercury, the global treaty to reduce mercury emissions. |
| 2017 | 08/16 | The Minamata Convention on Mercury entered into force. |
English Translation by Timothy George