The expression transitional justice emerged at the end of the Cold War, during the transition from dictatorships to democracies, and serves as a central concept in dealing with systemic injustice. This textbook examines the basic principles of transitional justice and explores its core mechanisms, including prosecutions, amnesties, truth commissions, reparations, and vetting the public service. It elaborates the substance and legal framework of these mechanisms and discusses current challenges.

The book provides extensive material illustrating a wide variety of transitional justice situations.

This book summarizes the subjects of transitional justice and Vergangenheitsbewaltigung systematically and clearly (Joachim Gauck, German Federal President, 2012-2017).