Mirjan R. Damaška

Sterling Professor Emeritus of Law
Education

Dr. Jur., University of Ljubljana, 1960

LL.B., University of Zagreb, 1955

Courses Taught
  • Evidence
  • International Criminal Law
  • Problems in Evidence
  • Procedure
Mirjan R. Damaška

Mirjan Damaška is Sterling Professor Emeritus of Law at Yale Law School. He teaches and writes in the fields of comparative and foreign law, procedural law, evidence, international criminal law, and continental legal history. 

He is the author of six books, among which The Faces of Justice and Evidence Law Adrift were translated into several languages. He has published more than 100 articles in professional journals of numerous countries. 

He received his basic law degree at the University of Zagreb in his native Croatia. He then studied at the Academy of International Law at The Hague, and the Comparative Law Faculty in Luxembourg. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Ljubljana (Slovenia). Following time spent practicing in the courts of former Yugoslavia, he began his teaching career at the University of Zagreb Law School, rising quickly to the rank of full professor, and briefly serving as Acting Dean. In 1971, he left his native land, and accepted a tenured position at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Since 1976, he has been on the faculty of Yale Law School. 

Damaška is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a member of the International Academy of Comparative Law, the Croatian Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Society of Comparative Law. In 1978-79, he was fellow of the National Endowment for the Humanities. He is also holder of several honorary degrees. 

He was keynote speaker and general reporter at many international congresses. Five symposia were organized about his work: Bielefeld (Germany) in 1987; Siena (Italy) in 1988; San Francisco in 1998; Zagreb (Croatia) in 2006; and New Haven in 2008. From 1990 to 1995, he served on the Advisory Board of the Central and East European Legal Initiative of ABA. Since 1995, he has periodically advised the Croatian government in its relations with the International War Crimes Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, and the International Court of Justice in The Hague. 

In 2005, he was appointed Amicus Curiae of the International War Crimes Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in the matter of transferring cases to domestic courts. In 2009, he was presented the lifetime achievement award by the American Society of Comparative Law.  In 2014, he was awarded the Life Achievement award by Jadranko Crnic Foundation, Croatia. He does counseling work on foreign law problems for law firms in New York, Los Angeles, and Washington.

In 2010 he was appointed special adviser to the Prime Minister of Croatia, and agent of the Republic of Croatia before the International Court of Justice, heading a team of Croatian and English lawyers in the case of Croatia v. Serbia

Two books of essays have been published in his honor: Jackson, Langer, & Tillers (eds.), "Crime, Procedure, and Evidence: Essays in honor of Mirjan Damaška (Oxford 2008), and Ackerman, Ambos, Sikiric (eds.), "Visions of Justice, Liber Amicorum Mirjan Damaška" (Berlin 2016).

Books

Dokaz Krivnje, Zagreb, 2021
Evaluation of Evidence: Pre-Modern and Modern Approaches
, Cambridge University Press, 2019
Lica Pravosudja i Drzavna Vlast, (2008)
Bi Jiao Fa Shi Ye Zhong De Zheng Ju Zhi Du (Evidence: A Comparative Study) Beijing 2006;
Il Diritto Delle Prove Alla Deriva, Il Mulino, Bologna 2003;
The Law of Evidence in Criminal Matters: Contemporary Tendencies (in Croatian), Zagreb 2001;
Las Caras de la Justicia i el Poder de lo Stato, Santiago, Chile 2000;
Evidence Law Adrift, Yale University Press 1997;
I Volti della Giustizia e del Potere, Il Mulino, Bologna 1991;
Comparative Law (with Schlesinger, Baade, & Herzog), 5th ed. Foundation Press 1988;
The Faces of Justice and State Authority, Yale University Press 1986;
Dictionary of Criminal Law and Procedure (in Croatian) (with B. Zlataric), Zagreb 1966;
The Defendant as Source of Proof in Contemporary Justice Systems (in Croatian), Zagreb 1962
Piao yi de Zheng ju fa (Evidence Law Adrift) Beijing 2003  
Si fa he guo jia quan li de duo zbong mina kong (Many Faces of Justice and National Authority) Beijing 2004
Domovina, Skolska knjiga publisher, Zagreb 2019.       

COMPLETE LIST OF PUBLICATIONS - Opera Omnia

1957
1) Novi engleski zakon o krivicnim djelima lišenja zivota, Naša Zakonitost, 1957, no.4/5, pp. 306- 311
2) Znacenje pravila "in dubio pro reo" u pozitivnom pravu, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagreb, 1958, no.2, pp. 109-120
3) O protutuzbi kod uvrede, Naša Zakonitost, 1958, no.5/6, pp. 239-246

1960
4) Potajna upotreba sprava za prisluškivanje u krivicnom postupku, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagrebu, 1960, no.3/4, p.196
5) Procesne posljedice upotrebe dokaza dobivenih na nedozvoljeni nacin, Naša Zakonitost, 1960, no.3-6, pp. 220-230

1961
6) O pojmu istog djela za potrebe pravomocnosti, Naša Zakonitost, 1961, no.1/2, pp. 16-26
7) "Krivicnopravni propisi", entry in "Yugoslav Medical Encyclopedia", 1961

1962
8) Neki krivicnopravni aspekti lijecnickih zahvata, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagrebu,1962, no. l pp. 22-31
9) The German Penal Code of 1871; translated by Gerhard O.W. Mueller and Thomas Buergenthal, 110 Univ. of Penn.L.Rev., 1056-1060 (1962)      

1963
10) Razmatranje o nekim kaznjivim spolnim ponašanjima, Naša Zakonitost 1963, no.9-10, pp. 396-410
11) Some Inquisitorial Features of Continental Criminal Proceedings Against Minors, 7 Journal of Offender Therapy 1963, no. 3, pp. 75-77      

1964
12) Mogu li procesne izjave stranaka predstavljati krivicno djelo klevete, Jugoslavenska Revija za kriminologiju i krivicno pravo 1964, no.2, pp. 246- 255
13) Varijacije na temu o funkcijama suca i izvorima prava u SAD, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagrebu 1964, no.1, pp. 42-46
14) Krivicno procesno pravo SAD (Skripta), Zagreb 1964
15) Dimitrijevic D.: Krivicno procesno pravo-Prikaz, Naša Zakonitost 1964, no.1-2, pp. 56-62
16) Les infractions contre la moralité sexuelle en droit yougoslave, Revue int. de droit pénal 1964, no.3-4, pp. 1011-1033
17) Yugoslav Criminal Code (translation), Belgrade 1964      

1965
18) Ignorantia iuris prodest, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagrebu 1965, no.3, pp. 141-158
19) Problem razgranicenja stvarne i pravne zablude Naša Zakonitost 1965, no.1, pp. 9-31
20) "Mala reforma" krivicnog procesnog prava Zapadne Njemacke, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagrebu 1965, no.4, pp. 258-266      

1966
21) Pokusno ukidanje smrtne kazne u Velikoj Britaniji, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagrebu, 1966, no.1, pp. 74-79    

1968
22) A Continental Lawyer in an American Law School: Trials and Tribunals of Adjustment, 116 Univ. of Penn. L.Rev., 1363-1378
(1968)
23) Adverse Legal Consequences of Conviction and Their Removal: A Comparative Study, 50 Journal of Criminal Law, Criminology, and Political Science, 347-360, 542-568 (1968)    

1969
24) Obavještenja gradjana dana organima unutrašnjih poslova i dokazivanje u krivicnom postupku, Jugoslavenska Revija za Kriminologiju i Krivicno Pravo, 1969, no.2, pp. 181-212
25) Yugoslav Code of Criminal Procedure, (translation with foreword), Belgrade 1969
26) Napomene o procetku krivicnog postupka i pocetku primjene procesne norme, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagrebu 1969, no.1, pp. 21-36

1970
27) Comparative Reflections on Reading the Amended Yugoslav Code: Interrogation of Defendants in Yugoslav Criminal Procedure, 61 J.Crim.L. Crim.Pol.Sc. 168-180 (1970)
28) Dvije vrste relativno bitnih povreda krivicnog procesnog prava, Odvjetnik 1970, no.11-12, pp. 423-436    

1971
29) Dve vrsti relativnih bivstvenih kršitev kazenskega procesnega prava, Pravnik 1971, no.1-3, pp. 26-38
30) Sudska praksa (Court Chronicle): Moze li se presuda djelomicno ukinuti samo u odluci o kazni; Iskaz sedmogodišnjeg sina okrivljenoga kao dokaz i problem izdvajanja zapisnika iz krivicnog spisa; Jug.rev.za krim.i pravo 1971, no.1, pp. 51-65
31) Comment: Comparing Study Draft to European Penal Codes, III Working Papers of the National Commission on Reform of Federal Criminal Laws, pp.1477-1505, Washington 1971
32) Obscenity Laws in Europe, Legal Analysis, Vol.II Technical Reports, Commission on Obscenity and Pornography, pp. 148-164, 175-185, 222-233, Washington 1971
33) Saobracajni delikti stranaca, Jugoslavenska Revija za kriminologiju i krivicno pravo 1971, no.3, pp. 375-404
34) "O modernizaciji nastave," "Hrvatsko Sveucilište" 1971, no.25, p.6, no.26, p.7, . no. 27, p.5
35) Les infractions routières des étrangers, Revue Internationale de Droit Pénal 1971, no.3/4, pp. 5-68
36) O osnovnom obliku nastave na pravnim fakultetima, Zbornik Pravnog fakulteta u Zagrebu, no.4, pp. 473-486 (1971)    

1973
37) Evidentiary Barriers to Conviction and Two Models of Criminal Procedure: A Comparative Study, 121 Univ. of Penn.L.Rev. 506-589 (1973)
38) O Intelektualnom ocinstvu nekih ideja o krivicnom procesnom pravu i o sporovima okonjega, "Naša Zakonitost" 1973, no.10, pp. 880-889    

1975
39) Structures of Authority and Comparative Criminal Procedure, 84 Yale L.J. 480-544 (1975)
40) Presentation of Evidence and Factfinding Precision, 123 Univ. of Penn.L.Rev. 1083- 1105 (1975)
41) Strukturmodelle der Staatsgewalt und ihre Bedeutung für das Strafverfahren, 87 Zeitschrift für die gesamte Strafrecht-swissenschaft, 715-741 (1975)    

1976
42) "Criminal Procedure in Scotland and France", 24 Am.J. of Comp.L. 779-784 (1976)    

1978
43) The Death of Legal Torture, 87 Yale L.Rev. 860-873 (1978)
44) Die Stellung des Verteidigers im amerikanischen Strafprozess, 90 Zeitschrift für die gesamte Strafrechtswissenschaft, 829-864 (1978)
45) A Foreign Perspective on the American Judicial System, in "State Courts: A Blueprint for the Future", (Williamsburg, VA 1978)    

1980
46) O problemu "racionalizacije" kaznjavanja u SAD, Naša Zakonitost 1980, no.3, pp. 54-66    

1981
47) The Reality of Prosecutorial Discretion: Comments on a German Monograph, 29 Am.J. of Comp.L., 119-138 (1981)
48) Versuche zur Rationalisierung der Strafzumessung in der USA, 93 Zeitschrift für die gesamte Strafrechtswissenschaft, 701-727 (1981)    

1982
49) The Adversary System, in S. Kadish (ed.), The Encyclopedia of Crime and Justice (1984)    

1983
50) Interference in the pending judicial process, in W.J. Habscheid (ed.), Effektiver Rechtsschutz und verfassungsmässige Ordnung,
(Bielefeld 1983)
51) Activism in Perspective, 92 Yale L.J. 1189-1197 (1983)
52) On circumstances favoring codification, 52 Revista Juridica de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, 353-371 (1983)    

1985
53) How Did It All Begin, 94 Yale L.J. 1807-1824 (1985) 1986
54) Nekaj o polozaju oškodovanca v kazenskem postopku ZDA, PRAVNIK, No. 5 (1986)    

1988
55) Der Austausch von Vorteilen im Strafverfahren: Plea-Bargaining und Absprachen, 8 Strafverteidiger, 398-401 (no.9, September 1988)    

1990
56) Atomistic and Holistic Evaluation of Evidence; A Comparative View, in D.S. Clark (Ed.), Comparative and Private International Law, Essays in Honor of John Merryman, 91-104 (1990)
57) Reflections on American Constitutionalism, 38 American Journal of Comparative Law (Supplement) pp. 421-443 (1990)    

1991
58) Remarks on the Rule of Law and on Yugoslavia, 21 Cumberland Law Rev., 503-507, 548-552 (1990-91)    

1992 
59) Of Hearsay and Its Analogues, 76 Minnesota L.Rev., 425-458 (1992)
60) Professione Legale e Organizzazione dello Stato, in Angelo Dondi (Ed.), Avvocatura e giustizia negli Stati Uniti 57-74 (Il Mulino, Bologna)    

1993
61) Hearsay in Cinquecento Italy, Studi in onore di Vittorio Denti, Volume One, Cedam, Padova 1994)    

1994
62) Propensity Evidence in Continental Legal Systems, 70 Chicago Kent Law Review, No.1, 55-67 (1994)    

1995
63) Free Proof and Its Detractors, The American Journal of Comparative Law, Vol. XLIII, No.3, 343-357 (Summer, 1995)
64) Izazovi Slobodnoj Ocjeni Dokaza, Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo i Praksu, Vol. 2, 41-55 (1995)    

1997
65) Rational and Irrational Proof Revisited, 5 Cardozo Journal of International and Comparative Law, 25-39 (1997)
66) Rational and Irrational Proof Revisited, in Nijboer & Reijntjes, Proceedings of the First World Conference on New Trends in Criminal Investigation and Evidence, 75-85 (1997)
67) The Uncertain Fate of Evidentiary Transplants: Anglo-American and Continental Experiments, American Journal of Comparative Law, Vol. XLV, No. 4, 839-852 (Fall 1997)
68) "O mijesanju inkvizitornih i akuzatornih procesnih formi," 4 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo i Praksu (Croatian Annual of Criminal Law and Practice), 381-394 (1997)
69) Vico and Modern Law, New Vico Studies, Volume 15 (Atlanta 1997)    

1998
70) "Truth in Adjudication," 49 Hastings Law Journal, 289-308 (1998)    

1999
71) "Aspectos Globales de la Reforma del Proceso Penal" essay in Reformas a la Justicia Penal en las Americas (Fundacion para el Debido Proceso Legal, Washington, D.C. 1999) pp. 37-57    

2001
72) "Modelli di Processo Penale" in Eredita del Novecento, (Istituto dell' Enciclopedia Italiana, Roma 2001) pp. 838-851
73) "Models of Criminal Procedure," in 51 Zbornik (Collected Papers of Zagreb Law School) pp. 477-516 (2001)
74) "The Shadow Side of Command Responsibility," American Journal of Comparative Law, Vol. 49, No. 3, 455-496 (2001)    

2003
75) “Cajpan de zhenshi” (Truth in Judgments), Extract from “Susong Faxue Yanjiu” (Research in Procedural Law) Vol. 5, 431 (Beijing 2003) Fan Chongyi, Editor
76) “Epistemology and Legal Regulation of Proof,” Law, Probability and Risk (2003) 2, pp. 117-130    

2004
77) Napomene o sporazumima u kaznenom postupku, 11 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo i Praksu (Croatian Annual of Criminal Law and Practice) 3-21 (2004)
78) Kitonic i Directio Methodica, introduction to the book of a 16th century Croatian lawyer (Zagreb 2004)
79) Si fa he guo jia A de duo zhong mina kong (The many Faces of Justice and State Authority) (Beijing 2004)
80) Piao yi de Zheng ju fa (Evidence Law Adrift) (Beijing 2004).
81) Negotiated Justice in International Criminal Courts, 2 Journal of International Criminal Justice, 1018-1039 (2004)
82) De la Prueba Por Referencia y sus Analogos, 2004 Neuva Doctrina Penal, 433-465    

2005
83) Assignment of Counsel and Perceptions of Fairness, 3 Journal of International Criminal Justice, 3-8 (2005)
84) Boljke Zajednickog Zlocinackog Pothvata (The Malady of Joint Criminal Enterprise) 12 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo I Praksu (Croatian Annual of Criminal Law and Procedure) no.1, 3-11 (2005)

2006
85) Sudbina anglo-americkih procesnih ideja u Italiji (The Destiny of Anglo-American Procedural Ideas in Italy), 13 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo i Praksu, br. 1, 3-16, 2006 (13 Croatian Annual of Criminal Law and Practice, no. 1, 3-16, 2006)
86) Bi Jiao Fa Shi Ye Zhong De Zheng Ju Zhi Du (Evidence: A Comparative Study) Beijing
87) “L’ incerta identità delle Corti penali internazionali,” Criminalia: Annuario di Scienze Penalistiche, 9-55 (2006)     
88) The jury and the law of evidence: real and imagined interconnections, 5 Law, Probability and Risk, 255-265 (2006)

2007
89) O nekim ucincima stranacki oblikovanog pripremnog postupka (On some effects of party-driven pre-trial proceedings), 14 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo i Praksu, (Croatian Annual of Criminal Law and Practice) 3-14 (2007)

 

 

2008
90.) What is the Point of International Criminal Justice?, 83 Chicago-Kent Law Review 329-365 (2008)
91.) Pravi Ciljevi Medjunarodnog Kaznenog Pravosudja (The Real Goals of International Criminal Justice), 15 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno pravo i Praksu (Croatian Annual of Criminal Law and Practice) 13-33 (2008).
92) Blame and Punishment: Against an "Instrumental Criminal Law," 6 Journal of International Criminal Justice, 965-968 (2008).

2009

93) Problematic Features of International Criminal Procedure, The Oxford Companion to International Criminal Law, 175-186 (2009).
94) Prigovori jednoj presirokoj dokaznoj zabrani (Objections to an overbroad exclusionary rule of evidence), 16 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo i Praksu(Croatian Annual of Criminal Law and Practice) 845-856 (2009).
95) Rimska Crkva i korijeni kazenog prava (The Church of Rome and the Roots of Criminal Law), Liber Amicorum Zvonimir Separovic 59-76 (2009).
96) The International Criminal Court Between Aspiration and Achievement, 14 UCLA Journal of International Law and Foreign Affairs 19-35 (2009).
97) Po onodobnom medjunarodnom pravu neosporna je Titova odgovornost za zlocine 1945. (Under international law of the period Tito’s responsibility for crimes committed in 1945 is incontestable) in Zvonimir Despot (ed.), Tito: Tajne Vladara (Tito, the Ruler’s Secrets) 467-471 (Zagreb 2009) 

2010

98) The Common Law/Civil Law Divide: Residual Truth of a Misleading Distinction, 49 Supreme Court Review (Canada) 3-21 (2010)
99) The Common Law/Civil Law Divide, in Janet Walker & Oscar Chase, Common Law, Civil Law and the Future of Categories, 3-22 (2010)
100) Hrvatski dokazni postupak u poredbenopravnom svijetlu, (The Croatian proof-taking process in comparative perspective), 17 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo i Praksu, (Croatian Annual of Criminal Law and Practice), 821-839 (2010)

2011
101) The Competing Visions of Fairness: The Basic Choice for International Criminal Tribunals, 36 North Carolina Journal of International Law and Commercial Regulation, 365-387 (2011).
102) "La Incerta Idendidad de los Tribunales Penales Internationales," 23 Cuadernos de Doctrina y Jurisprudencia Penal, Anos XIV-XV, 15-70 (Buenos Aires 2011).

 

 

2012
103) Reflections on Fairness in International Criminal Justice, 10 Journal of International Criminal Justice, 611-620 (2012);
104) Neuvažene Prisutnosti u Medjunarodnim Kaznenim Predmetima, 19 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazneno Pravo I Praksu (Croation Annual of Criminal Law and Practice), 3-14 (2012).
105) The Quest for Due Process in the Age of Inquisition, 60 American Journal of Comparative Law, 919-954 (2012).
106) Unacknowledged Presences in International Criminal Justice, 10 Journal of International Criminal Justice, 1239-1256 (2012).

2013
107) Should National and International Justice be Subject to the Same Evaluative Framework? In: G. Sluiter et al., "International Criminal Procedure, Principles and Rules," 1418-1422
108) Visiones antagonicas sobre la impacialidad: una eleccion fundamental de los tribunales internacionales, in El Cronista del Estado Social y Democratico del Derecho, no. 37, pp. 32-37
109) Potraga za pravicnim postupkom u doba inkvizitorne procedure, 20 Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kazeno Pravo I Praksu (Croation Annual of Criminal Law and Practice), 167-202 (2013).
110) La ricerca del giusto processo nell' età dell Inquisitione, Criminalia 2012, 27-67.
111) On circumstances favoring codification.  In Michael Bohlander & Daley Birkett (eds.), “The Codification of Criminal Law,” 419-435 (2014).

2015
112) El derecho probatorio a la deriva (Madrid, 2015).

2019
113) Evaluation of Evidence: Pre-Modern and Modern Approaches, Cambridge University Press, 2019.
114) Domovina, Skolska knjiga publisher, Zagreb 2019.  
115) Dokaz Krivnje, Zagreb, 2021.   

2022
116) “The future of free evaluation of evidence”, Liber Amicorum Karoly Bard, vol. II, 197-204 (Budapest, 2022).