An overview of the ICC, its jurisdiction, and the challenges and issues.

1. Individual Criminal Liability in
International Law
The Rome Statute and the International
Criminal Court

2. Agenda
 Overview
– What are the history and mission of the ICC?
 Jurisdiction
– What crimes are under the jurisdiction of the
ICC?
 Exercise of Jurisdiction
– How are cases brought to the ICC, not domestic
courts?
 Issues
– Does the ICC infringe on state sovereignty?

3. International Criminal Tribunals and
the ICC
 Ad hoc courts of limited jurisdiction
− Nuremberg and Tokyo tribunals
− International Criminal Tribunal on Rwanda
− International Criminal Tribunal on the Former
Yugoslavia
− Sierra Leone, Timor-Leste, Cambodia...
 ICC
− Expansion in time: A permanent court
− Expansion in space: Not limited to regions

4. Overview of the ICC
 Entered into force July 1, 2002
 121 parties
 Court of last resort

5. Crimes

6. Crimes
Serious
Crimes

7. Crimes
Serious
Crimes
International
Crimes

8. Crimes
Serious
Crimes
Inter-
national
Crimes
Genocide

9. Crimes
Serious
Crimes
Inter-
national
Crimes Crimes
Against
Humanity

10. Crimes
Serious
Crimes
Inter-
national
Crimes
War Crimes

11. Crimes
Serious
Crimes
Inter-
national
Crimes
Crimes of Aggression

12. Crimes
Serious
Crimes
Inter-
national
The Crimes Crimes
Crime of Against
Genocide Humanity
Crimes of
War Crimes Aggression

13. Genocide
 Objective element
– Action: Killing, etc. (Art. 6 (a) to (e))
 Subjective element
– Intention: Intent to destroy national, ethnical,
racial, religious group

14. Crimes Against Humanity
 Objective element
– Action: Murder, etc. (Art. 7 (a) to (k))
– Condition: Part of widespread/systematic attack
 Subjective element
– Knowledge of the attack

15. War Crimes
 Objective element
– Action: Grave Geneva breaches, etc. (Art. 8 (2))
– Condition: In particular when part of
policy/plan
 Subjective element

16. Crime of Aggression
 Stay tuned! (Art. 5 (2))

17. Other Limits on Jurisdiction
 Temporal jurisdiction
– Crimes committed after entry into force (11 (1))
 Admissibility (Art. 17)
– Investigation or prosecution by a state
• Unless unable or unwilling
• Last resort

18. Exercise of Jurisdiction

19. ICC Case Checklist
Is the crime under ICC jurisdiction? Art. 5
Art. 11
Is there temporal jurisdiction?
Art. 13
Was the case properly referred?
Art. 17
Is the domestic court unable or unwilling to prosecute?
ICC trial

20. Exercise of Jurisdiction
and State Sovereignty
 Of the 3 forms of case referral, which is least
problematic when it comes to sovereignty?
 Is it justifiable for the Security Council to refer
cases to the ICC, even situations in non-ICC
states?
 Is it justifiable for the ICC prosecutor to initiate
cases? Why or why not?

21. Criticism of the ICC
 Lack of oversight, checks & balances
 Selectivity
 Sovereignty concerns
 Makes peace process more difficult

22. Thinking about the ICC
 What checks are there on the ICC’s power?
 Is the ICC biased against Africa?
 Does the ICC infringe on sovereignty?
 Is the ICC doing its job deterring int’l crimes?