To date, in Western jurisdictions, many criminal justice reforms are devised and implemented with a close eye on public opinion. These are typically intended to regain or foster legitimacy. However, within this context, there is no common understanding of this concept. This essay aims to provide such a conceptualisation of legitimacy, to enable a consistent and systematic evaluation of attempts to accommodate public opinion. To this end, five levels of legitimacy research are discussed that could structure evaluations of public-opinion-targeted reforms: (1) the normative dimension, (2) the ‘audiences’ addressed, (3) the purpose of the reforms, (4) trust and distrust, and (5) dialogic, or longitudinal effects. Furthermore, since research departing from these five levels of analysis is likely to result in observations that are, by nature, incommensurable, it is argued that an overall assessment of legitimacy always requires a judgment, rather than mere measurement.
Empirical findings demonstrate that neuroscientific expertise is increasingly prevalent in courtrooms. This suggests that both "territorial conflicts" between law and neuroscience-for example about how to conceptualize concepts like culpability-and questions regarding the integration of neuroscience and law, which both have long been present in theoretical discussions, are now finding their way to legal practice. As jurisdictions around the globe differ on multiple dimensions (e.g., on how concepts like culpability are conceptualized, embedded in legal doctrine, and how integration of neuroscience takes place within (procedural) legal frameworks) analyses on a national level are needed next to universal endeavors. In this article, the Dutch situation will be addressed. First, we will assess whether the theoretical notions underlying Dutch criminal law are compatible with the theoretical discussion between neuroscience and legal doctrine. Second, we turn to empirical evidence as to the way neuroscientific information is brought into Dutch legal practice. Finally, we will examine how (well) the current practice of forensic assessment is able to accommodate neuroscientific information. Herewith, we aim to illustrate that the manner of integration is indeed dependent on jurisdiction specific features and that the international debate would benefit from more national perspectives.
A key aspect of institutions for conflict resolution is their legitimacy. What legitimacy entails, however, is essentially contested and depends in part on whether one takes a legal, normative, or social perspective. The current special issue aims to gain a better understanding of legitimacy within the context of institutions for conflict resolution by examining (1) whether and, if so, how studying institutions for conflict resolution through the lens of legitimacy can deepen our understanding of these institutions, and (2) whether and, if so, how studying legitimacy in the specific context of institutions for conflict resolution can enrich our understanding of legitimacy. After introducing the term 'institutions for conflict resolution' and detailing current approaches to legitimacy, this Introduction assesses what the potential cross-fertilisation between both concepts may look like. We do so based on the papers included in this special issue, which showcase the diversity of ways in which legitimacy of institutions for conflict resolution may be researched, as they focus on different types of conflicts that take place within different fields of law and involve different kinds of institutions. Finally, we take stock of the insights yielded by the papers included in this issue, and reflect on directions for further research on legitimacy, institutions for conflict resolution, and their cross-fertilisation.
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