PART B

The Adversarial System is a legal system used in the common law countries. In this system, a case is argued by two opposing sides that have the main responsibility for finding and presenting facts.

The prosecutor tries to prove that the defendant is guilty, and the defendant’s lawyer argues for freeing the defendant. A judge or a jury who does not investigate any further then decides if the defendant is guilty or not.

Both parties have the equal opportunity to present their opinion. The judge cannot make any comments until both parties have presented their evidence. This makes the judge appear unbiased, as the judge must wait until all evidence is heard to make a judgment. It appears to be fair, sensible and a reliable method of resolving disputes.

However, the finding of evidence rests on the resources of the two parties, which may be unequal. Also the parties only present evidence positive to their arguments. In one continuous trial, the amount of information to be taken in by a judge or jury can be quite extensive. Jurors could be confused by the procedures associated with the rules of evidence and with the information provided by expert witnesses. If jurors do not understand this information received, it may not be given enough acknowledgement and consideration.

An Inquisitorial system is a legal system used in civil law countries. In this system, the judge decides what questions to ask and investigates the facts of the case.

The judge questions witnesses in depth and can call witnesses to appear while prosecution and defence parties can ask follow up questions. The judge is the main person in finding the truth and all the evidence that either proves the guilt or innocence of the accused before the court. In this system there are no jury trials and a judge can force an accused to make statements and answer questions.

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