THE ADVERSARIAL VS INQUISITORIAL DICHOTOMY IN INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL LAW: A REDUNDANT CONVERSATION

Abstract

International criminal tribunals have procedural rules of both an adversarial and inquisitorial nature. Such tribunals portray that it is possible to amalgamate what are often thought of as dichotomous models. This essay seeks to show that these are, in fact, not dichotomous models but are increasingly converging in both national and international judicial systems. The reasons for the adversarial/inquisitorial distinction being a redundant conversation are threefold: firstly, there is no longer a “pure” adversarial or inquisitorial system, with national judicial systems increasingly incorporating elements of both; secondly, the norms of human rights necessitate the convergence of the two models; and finally, the unique context and goals of international justice mean that the perceived dichotomy of the adversarial/inquisitorial system is no longer relevant. As a result, international criminal tribunals portray that it is possible to incorporate elements of both systems into a single judicial system.