A new criminal-trial system started in Japan on Nov. 1 when the revised Criminal Procedure Law went into effect. The key point of revision is the introduction of a "pretrial clarification procedure," whereby prosecutors and attorneys outline their respective evidence and arguments before trial begins. In addition, judges set a trial schedule.
The revision is a welcome prelude to the "lay judge system" that will start by May 2009. This participatory trial system will allow selected citizens to act as judges in major criminal cases, such as those involving murder, rape and arson. With lay judges working together with professional judges, such criminal trials are expected to become much easier to understand for ordinary people who are unfamiliar with legal technicalities.
The new trial system, combined with the pretrial procedure, will likely change significantly the way criminal trials are conducted in this country. Both prosecutors and attorneys should cooperate actively in the new procedure so that trials can proceed more effectively and efficiently.