Iwao Hakamada, now 87, is the world's longest-serving death row inmate, according to Amnesty International.
He was sentenced to death in 1968 for murdering his boss, the man's wife and their two children in 1966.
The former professional boxer confessed after 20 days of interrogation during which he said he was beaten. He later retracted the confession in court.
Rights groups have criticised Japan's reliance on confessions, which they say police often obtain by force.
In the retrial, judges will rule on whether DNA from blood stains found on clothing alleged to have been worn by the killer matches Mr Hakamada's.
His lawyers had argued that it did not and that the evidence was fabricated.
Iwao Hakamada was arrested and accused of robbing and killing his employer and his family at a miso or soybean processing factory in Shizuoka west of Tokyo in 1966. They were found stabbed to death after a fire.
Source: www.bbc.com
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