陪審

• Reading: ばいしん
• Romaji: baishin
• Kanji breakdown: 陪 (bai) — accompany, assist; 審 (shin) — judge, deliberate
• Pronunciation: /ba.i.ɕiɴ/

Meaning

Jury; jury trial. A legal system in which a group of ordinary citizens participates in determining guilt or innocence.

The full phrase 陪審制度 (jury system) is more common than the standalone term. Japan introduced its own lay judge system called 裁判員制度 in 2009, which is distinct from the Anglo-American 陪審 system. 陪審員 means juror. The concept is often discussed in comparative legal contexts and is strongly associated with American and British legal culture in Japanese media and academic writing.

Examples

1. アメリカでは重大刑事事件に対して陪審による裁判が憲法上保障されている。 In the United States, trial by jury in serious criminal cases is constitutionally guaranteed.
2. 日本の裁判員制度は陪審制度とは異なり、職業裁判官と市民裁判員が合議で判決を下す。 Japan's lay judge system differs from the jury system in that professional judges and citizen judges deliberate together to reach a verdict.
3. 陪審員の選定プロセスにおける偏見の排除は現代司法の重要な課題だ。 The elimination of bias in the jury selection process is an important challenge for modern justice.

Usage Guide

Context: law, criminal justice, comparative law, civics, media

Tone: legal, academic

Origin & History

Sino-Japanese compound: 陪 (bai) — accompany, assist; 審 (shin) — judge, deliberate. The characters together convey the idea of lay participants assisting in judicial deliberation. The term entered Japanese legal vocabulary during the Meiji era as part of legal modernisation based on Western models.

Cultural Context

Era: Meiji-Modern

Generation: Adult

Social background: Educated