ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts covered in the preceding chapters of this book. It discusses the system and practice of lay adjudication in a large number of European countries. In five of these countries observations were conducted and judges and lay participants interviewed about their perspectives on lay participation. The book suggests that participation in a system by 'ordinary citizens' may contribute to a better and more informed debate about that system in society more generally. The literature discusses the issue of representation primarily with regard to the political domain; how far do representative bodies reflect a country's population. The legal domain differs from the political domain in various respects. Courts and professional judges should be prevented from moving too far away from society and from individual citizens, and ordinary citizens should never be left without any input of any kind at all in the administration of justice.
