Guilty Plea Agreement in Proceedings Before the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia / Sporazum o priznanju krivice u postupku pred međunarodnim krivičnim tribunalom za bivšu jugoslaviju

Abstract

Guilty plea agreement is a new legal concept in the criminal procedure legislation of Bosnia and Herzegovina that was accepted under foreign influences. While frequently applied, a number of contentious issues still remain. To resolve them it is necessary to study the agreement in other legislations. A special place here belongs to the procedure and practice of The Hague Tribunal and the Office of the Prosecution that influenced its standardization in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As a result, certain solutions are specific and do not exist in legislations of other countries of the former Yugoslavia such as, for instance, a separate hearing for the imposition of criminal sanction following the agreement’s acceptance. At the time of its introduction in the Bosnia and Herzegovina legislation, the Statute and the Rules of the Hague Tribunal were well-known, just like the practice created in proceedings before it and the Hague Office of the Prosecution. The majority of indictees before the Hague Tribunal were citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with many lawyers from Bosnia and Herzegovina acting as defence counsels. An examination of this issue contributes to a better understating of this principle, enables more proper application, but should, also, lead to better legal solutions.