A Report on the First Lay Judge Trial in Tokyo, August 2009

Abstract

The article reports on the inaugural case of the reintroduced lay judge system for criminal trials in Japan. After briefly summarizing the key elements of the new system, the author shares his personal observations from the trial, which took place in the Tokyo District Court in August 2009 attracting considerable media attention. The new system for the time being remains controversial, but all in all seems to have got off to a smooth start.