In one stream of research, I ask if the international community, especially criminal courts and tribunals, can push the parties responsible for human rights abuses committed during conflict to hold themselves accountable for the crimes they’ve committed. How might threats from international institutions impact on-the-ground negotiations about justice and accountability? I also ask how the promises and pitfalls of accountability can shape transitions from dictatorship to democracy. Do transitional justice mechanisms help or hurt new democracies? Does transitional justice in non-transitional contexts — like the push for racial justice in the United States — face the same kinds of challenges as elsewhere?