Baron Matsuoka Yasutake (松岡康毅, August 14, 1846 – September 1, 1923) was a legal scholar and cabinet minister in the pre-war Empire of Japan.

Following the Meiji Restoration, in 1870, he returned to his native Tokushima, where he obtained a position as a bureaucrat within the prefectural office, and also serving as a legal councilor.

In February 1886, he was sent overseas to study the court system in France and Germany, returning to Japan in November 1887 and joining the legal team assembled under Justice Minister Yamada Akiyoshi to draft improvements to Japan’s Civil Code.

In June 1891, he was accepted a role as Prosecutor-General, and was given a seat in the House of Peers of the Diet of Japan in December of the same year.

From 1894 to 1898, under the 2nd and 3rd Itō administrations, Matsuoka served as Vice-Minister for the Home Ministry, participating in numerous committees and bureaus.