‘Is It Too Late Now to Say Sorry?’

Abstract

Abstract This article explores the use of remorse as a source of leniency at international criminal tribunals. It outlines the difficulties that beset international tribunals’ attempts to develop a clear, consistent conceptualization of the idea of remorse. Using a range of perspectives, it offers ways forward in terms of both comprehending remorse, as experienced by perpetrators of international crimes, and incorporating remorse into the present international criminal legal framework. In particular, it analyses how sincere expressions of remorse within the international criminal courtroom can signal and produce transformative effects for different players operating in the terrain of international criminal justice.