Editing Illumian (section)

===Law & Justice===
Illumian law sits entirely in the hands of each cabal’s arbiter, who enforces the cabal’s laws and metes out punishment. No one, visitor or cabal member, is beyond the reach of the arbiter for crimes that occur within the walls of the enclave or during a cabal mission. The arbiter handles every aspect of the illumian justice system, from the investigation of a crime to the trial and the sentencing.

The arbiter heads the justice directorate and investigates the most serious crimes personally, assigning subordinates to more routine cases (assuming the cabal is large enough to warrant assistants). Any member of the justice directorate can make arrests, but only the arbiter can judge someone’s guilt or innocence. The arbiter is more than just a judge, however. The arbiter questions witnesses, cross-examines the accused, and can stop a trial to gather evidence. When the arbiter is satisfied that he has all the relevant evidence, he renders a judgment (and sentence, if necessary) on the spot.

The illumian code of laws varies from cabal to cabal. Because illumians love the written word so intensely, arbiters keep a law library full of Black Table decrees, legal precedents, and prior opinions they can turn to for guidance. In this respect, the illumian justice system is more like a modern court system than a medieval one. However, the notion of an impartial judge and a separate jury is foreign to illumians. An arbiter has total control of the legal process, which is efficient if the arbiter is fair and competent and potentially dangerous if the arbiter has an ulterior motive.

Those who feel an arbiter’s decision is unfair can draft a written appeal to the Black Table. The members of the Black Table must read the appeal, but need not act on it. By custom, they can only overturn the arbiter’s decision by removing the arbiter from his or her post, but they can change a punishment by decree. The right of appeal isn’t limited to the accused; victims or other wronged parties may appeal to the Black Table if they feel a punishment was too lenient.

The illumian formula for sentencing includes restitution for the victim, a deterrent punishment, and some degree of social stigma for the criminal. Arbiters employ great creativity in developing punishments that thematically fit the crime. For example, an illumian convicted of poisoning a rival’s wine might be assigned the following punishment:
* Pay an annual stipend to the victim (restitution).
* At every meal, serve the victim (social stigma).
* Taste each course before offering it to the victim, but receive no other food and thus linger on the brink of starvation (deterrent).