する verbs with a passive translation


> 裁判で彼の無罪が確定しました。  
>  His innocence was decided at the trial.

First problem: even though I've translated this sentence I still don't
understand its meaning. Does it mean that the person was found innocent? Or
does it mean that they debated his innocence at the trial and the outcome
could still have been either innocent or guilty, and we just don't know the
result?

Second problem: it seems strange to me to have a する verb for something that
best translates in the passive. I'm used to the する/なる distinction where
someone actively does something with する but things just happen by themselves
with なる.

I've seen another example of a する verb being used passively recently (can't
remember what it was now) so I assume it is quite common. Am I thinking about
this in the wrong way can anyone shed some light on a better way to think
about it?




Some verbs, some consisting of a noun and auxiliary する, work as both
transitive and intransitive verbs, and 確定する is one such verb. It is used
intransitively in your example with 無罪 being its subject. If there is no
intransitive equivalent in English, the idea expressed by such a verb needs to
be translated with a transitive verb either in the passive voice or, depending
on the verb, with a reflective pronoun (e.g. itself) as its object. There
seems to be nothing strange about that.

確定する may be more common as an intransitive verb. When it takes an object, it
is often used in the causative form 確定させる.




Some verbs, some consisting of a noun and auxiliary する, work as both
transitive and intransitive verbs, and 確定する is one such verb. It is used
intransitively in your example with 無罪 being its subject. If there is no
intransitive equivalent in English, the idea expressed by such a verb needs to
be translated with a transitive verb either in the passive voice or, depending
on the verb, with a reflective pronoun (e.g. itself) as its object. There
seems to be nothing strange about that.

確定する may be more common as an intransitive verb. When it takes an object, it
is often used in the causative form 確定させる.

