A lateral JFET has a basic structure including an n-type semiconductor layer (3) formed of an n-type impurity region and a p-type semiconductor layer formed of a p-type impurity region on the n-type semiconductor layer (3). Moreover, in the p-type semiconductor layer, there are provided a p+-type gate region layer (7) extending into the n-type semiconductor layer (3) and containing p-type impurities of an impurity concentration higher than that of the n-type semiconductor layer (3) and an n+-type drain region layer (9) spaced from the p+-type gate region layer (7) by a predetermined distance and containing n-type impurities of an impurity concentration higher than that of the n-type semiconductor layer (3). With this structure, the lateral JFET can be provided that has an ON resistance further decreased while maintaining a high breakdown voltage performance.