International courts and tribunals are key actors in international law, both because of their primary dispute resolution function and for their role in developing international law in a more general sense. Their growing number and complexity makes a detailed study of their practice particularly relevant. The Rules, Practice, and Jurisprudence of International Courts and Tribunals examines existing international dispute resolution institutions, including those of general jurisdiction (ICJ, PCA), specialised jurisdiction (ITLOS, ICSID, WTO), as well as human rights courts, international criminal courts and tribunals, courts of regional integration agreements, claims commissions and tribunals, and administrative tribunals of international organizations. Uniquely, it assesses both procedural rules and essential case-law, making it relevant for both academics and practitioners in international law.

This book provides the most comprehensive overview of the law and jurisprudence of the ad hoc international criminal tribunals and courts, as well as the International Criminal Court. It also includes relevant jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and practice of the UN Human Rights Committee. The book examines the nature and evolution of the relevant statutory provisions of the international tribunals and provides the rationale behind the evolution. It significantly expands the subject matter of the relevant jurisprudence and reflects the developments and the current state of human rights standards in international criminal procedure. With cited jurisprudence and law that is up-to-date as of September 1, 2013, the book contains a digest and analysis of decisions, orders, and judgments of: the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia * the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda * the Special Court for Sierra Leone * the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia * the International Criminal Court * the European Court of Human Rights.

The International Criminal Court has significantly grown in importance and impact over the decade of its existence. This book assesses its impact, providing a comprehensive overview of its practice. It shows how the Court has contributed to major developments in international criminal law, and identifies the ways in which it is in need of reform.

The International Criminal Court is at a crossroads. In 1998, the Court was still a fiction. A decade later, it has become operational and faces its first challenges as a judicial institution. This volume examines this transition. It analyses the first jurisprudence and policies of the Court. It provides a systematic survey of the emerging law and practice in four main areas: the relationship of the Court to domestic jurisdictions, prosecutorial policy and practice, the treatment of the Courta (TM)s applicable law and the shaping of its procedure. It revisits major themes, such as jurisdiction, complementarity, cooperation, prosecutorial discretion, modes of liability, pre-trial, trial and appeals procedure and the treatment of victims and witnesses, as well as their criticisms. It also explores some of challenges and potential avenues for future reform.

This impressive and unique collection of essays covers important aspects of the legal regime of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The volume begins with an analysis of the historical development of the ICC, the progressive development of international humanitarian and international criminal law by the ad hoc Tribunals and the work of mixed national/international jurisdictions. The legal and institutional basis of the ICC is then dealt with in detail, including the organs of the ICC, war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes of aggression, modes of liability before the ICC and defences before the ICC. Part III focuses on the court at work, including its procedural rules, criminal proceedings at the ICC, penalties and appeal and revision procedures. Part IV deals with the relationship of the ICC with states and international organizations. The contributors are established scholars in the field of international criminal and humanitarian law, many of whom are practitioners in the various tribunals.

This study analyzes the methods used by international criminal tribunals when determining customary international criminal law and to consider the compatibility of these approaches with the nullum crimen sine lege principle. In this context, the following research questions are of particular importance: Is there one approach common to all international criminal tribunals, or can different approaches be detected in their jurisprudence when determining customary international law? Do international criminal tribunals regard both traditional elements of customary international law – State practice and opinio iuris – as necessary elements for the establishment of customary international law? Do international criminal tribunals argue along the lines of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), requiring a high frequency and consistency of State practice that is both “extensive and virtually uniform”?In addition, the book analyzes the evidence used by international criminal tribunals in order to establish the constituent elements of customary international. It then poses the question: Do international criminal tribunals distinguish, as defined by Schwarzenberger, between the “law-creating processes” of public international law on the one hand, and the “law-determining agencies” as a subsidiary means of determining rule of law on the other?Assuming that they exist, how can different methodological approaches to determine customary international law be assessed in light of the nullum crimen sine lege principle? Does the principle require judges to apply the traditional method to establish customary international law as being based on extensive, uniform and enduring State practice accompanied by opinio iuris? Can the principle balance the desire for justice and the specificities of law creation of the international legal order with fairness for the accused? How can the law be accessible and criminal punishment foreseeable, when the underlying legal basis for criminal convictions, namely customary international criminal law, is unwritten in nature?

Beginning about a century ago, but with a dramatic acceleration of the process in the final decades of the 1900s, international courts and tribunals have taken a prominent place in the enforcement of international law, the maintenance of international peace and security and the protection and promotion of human rights. This book addresses the great diversity of these institutions, their structures and legal frameworks and their contribution to the international rule of law.