The Tokyo International Military Tribunal (IMT) is not frequently discussed in the literature on international criminal law, and it is often thought that it was little more (and possibly less) than a footnote to the Nuremberg proceedings. This work seeks to dispel this widely held belief, by showing the way in which the Tokyo IMT was both similar and different to its Nuremberg counterpart, the extent to which the critiques of the Tokyo IMT have purchase, and the Tribunal's contemporary relevance. The book also shows how the IMT needs to be treated, not just as one overarching entity, but also as being made up of different sets of people, who made up the prosecution, the defence and the judges. These disagreed with each other, and at times internally, over the way in which the trial should proceed, and the book shows how each had an impact on the proceedings.

The book is a comprehensive legal analysis of the Tokyo IMT, covering its law, theory, practice and the lessons it may teach to those prosecuting and defending international crimes today. It also places the trial in its political and historical context. The work is based in part on extensive archival research undertaken by the authors, which has unearthed large quantities of documents that have previously been ignored by those who have studied the Tribunal.