Japan's education and culture ministry has exercised the government's legal authority to question the religious group formerly known as the Unification Church.

The group is under close scrutiny for alleged shady marketing practices and its solicitation of large donations from members.

The ministry sent a document to the group on Tuesday, calling for a response by December 9 with details about its management, account records and other documents.

This is the first time for the government to exercise the authority to question a religious group.

The authority was given to the government in a revision to the Religious Corporations Act in 1996 that granted authorities "the right to collect reports and ask questions" of groups suspected of violating the law.

The revision came after a series of incidents perpetrated by the Aum Shinrikyo cult, including the deadly 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway system.

The ministry had been preparing to question the former Unification Church on grounds that the group was ordered to pay damages of at least 1.4 billion yen, or 9.9 million dollars, in 22 civil lawsuits.

If the ministry finds evidence that the group has engaged in actions that violate laws and significantly harm public welfare, it will consider seeking a court order to disband the group.