If the client is considering to prepare a notarized will, the first step is to have a legal consultation with an attorney. During the consultation, the attorney will provide a general explanation of a notarized will, explain the cost, inquire types of client's estates and kin, and review necessary documents.
If the client decides to make a notarized will after the consultation, the client and the attorney will enter into a retainer agreement for will creation.
* Paragraph 1, Article 30 of Basic Rules on the Duties of Practicing Attorneys
In accepting a case, an attorney shall prepare a written mandate containing attorneys’ fees. Provided, however, that when there are grounds for difficulty in preparing a written mandate, such document shall be prepared after such grounds have ceased to exist.

Once a retainer agreement has been executed, the attorney will start the work to make a notarized will.
First, based on interviews, the attorney will prepare a list of the client's estates and collect documents proving the existence of the estates. For example, the attorney will collect a bank passbook to prove the existence of a bank deposit, or a property assessment report or a taxation statement to prove the existence of a real estate. The attorney will also obtain the client's identification and documents showing family relationships (e.g., marriage certificate, birth certificate).
Then, in accordance with the client's wishes, the attorney determines “who gets what in what proportion,” and “in what manner.” At the same time, the attorney will make sure that there are no legal problems in the contents of the client's desired will.
Based on these steps, the attorney drafts a notarized will, and after an approval by the client, this draft is sent to a notary officer to finalize.
The attorney then coordinates schedules of the client, the attorney and the notary, to set a date to visit the notary office. In addition, if the client is not a Japanese speaker, an interpreter will be provided.
On the scheduled day, the notary officer reads out the contents of the notarized will to the client and confirms that the will is in accordance with the client's wishes. The client and two witnesses (the attorney and a fellow attorney) sign and seal the will, and finally the notary officer signs and seals the notarized will to complete it.

The above is a brief description of the general process of making a notarized will. In practice, it may take some time to collect the documents, since clients do not always know exactly what property they own.
If the document collection goes smoothly and the contents of the will are not too complicated, a notarized will generally will be completed within 30 to 45 days (four to six weeks).