Gacaca
From Rwanda
Religious and customary lawCriminal law
What it means
Traditionally, a community meeting on the grass to settle local disputes. After the 1994 genocide, Rwanda used community-based gacaca courts, with elected lay judges, to try very large numbers of cases.
Why it travels badly
It was neither a customary tribunal as it had been before, nor an ordinary court. It was a state-created hybrid that borrowed the name and the community setting. Lawyers disagree about how well it protected fair-trial rights, so the name carries more than one meaning.
How other systems say it
Rwanda
gacaca courts
Set up by statute, with lay judges, and closed in 2012 after finishing its work.
International criminal law
International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
A separate UN court that tried those most responsible. It sat in Arusha.
Common law
community justice / restorative process
The closest comparison, but gacaca also tried serious crimes and could order prison terms.
Tip for translators and students
Use 'gacaca courts' and explain that they were community courts with lay judges, not a traditional or international tribunal.
Related: Adat, Ubuntu, Jury and lay judges
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
TheLawToKnow Tools’s glossary is an educational overview of the main differences between legal systems. It is not legal advice.
