In this paper I will provide an overview of the characteristics of “citizen-led inquires,” also called “unofficial truth projects” or “civil society truth commission initiatives,” including their normative framework; key aspects in which they differ from official truth commissions; and some of the underlying factors why they are created. I will use three case studies: the Greensboro Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the North Carolina Commission on Inquiry, and the Poverty Truth Commission in Scotland to analyze opportunities and challenges presented by these inquiry processes. I will relate the topic to the theme of the ICON-S conference by addressing whether these commissions partly respond to increasing popular distrust in government, identified as one challenge that is being faced by public law and whether they represent resistance in the global and national public law order.
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