Glossary
Presumption of innocence
common-lawcivil-lawinternational
The rule that an accused is treated as innocent until proved guilty according to law.
In more detail
Guaranteed by Article 14(2) of the ICCPR and virtually every constitution. It places the burden on the prosecution and restricts pre-trial detention, adverse inferences from silence and reverse-onus provisions, though jurisdictions differ on how strictly those limits bite.
Related terms
- burden-of-proof
- mens-rea
See how this applies to you
Definitions are general. How a term operates depends on the jurisdiction you are in.