A Controversial Pardon!

Time has come to introduce checks and balances into the pardoning powers of the US President to prevent conflict of interests

- V Jayaraman Writer

Forgiveness and Pardon, though used synonymously, are not the same. Forgiveness is a personal decision to let go of the anger and resentment one feels towards another for the hurt or harm caused. A pardon is a formal act of forgiveness granted by an authority figure.

The news of the outgoing US President Joe Biden pardoning the felonies of his son Hunter Biden has hogged the world media in the first week of December 2024.

The Latin Maxim 'Nemo Judex in Sua Causa' means 'no man shall be the judge of his own cause'. It is the cornerstone of natural justice and applies not only to judges, but also to quasi-judicial authorities like the US President, who is empowered to grant pardon to those found guilty by the American courts of law. Perhaps the time has come to introduce checks and balances into the pardoning powers of the US President to prevent conflict of interests.