International Criminal Law

The course looks at the concepts and enforcement of international criminal law. It is about the practice, theory and doctrine of international criminal law. It assumes a basic knowledge of principles of public international law, especially those relating to state responsibility, jurisdiction, and the relationship between international and domestic legal systems. The focus of the course is the area of international criminal law concerned with traditional "war crimes" and, in particular, the four core crimes set out in the Rome Statute (war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and aggression). It adopts a historical, philosophical and practical focus throughout.

The course will first explore the definition and the progressive development of the concepts of international crime and international criminal law. This will include the development of criminal responsibility of individuals under international law and the correlative development of national and international mechanisms for its enforcement. Attention will be focused essentially on the so called "Nuremberg crimes" and on the subsequent developments, even if reference will also be made to other international/trans-national crimes such as acts of terrorism on the basis of the time available.

The application and interpretation of some general principles and notions of (international) criminal law by domestic and international courts will be assessed, including an analysis of non-retroactivity of criminal offences, defences and grounds for excluding criminal responsibility. Reference will also be made to forms of implementation other than criminal prosecution (e.g. truth and reconciliation commission), as well as to the question of amnesties.

Upon completion, a participant should:

1. have an understanding of international criminal law and its basic principles, concepts and methodologies;
2. be familiar with the sources and methods of research in the field of international criminal law;
3. have an understanding of the evolution of the concept of international crime, from piracy juris gentium to the drafting of the Statute of the International Criminal Court;
4. be able to examine the role played by the United Nations and its subsidiary bodies in the development of international criminal law
5. be able to examine the different international and national procedures for prosecuting or otherwise dealing with international crimes, and the political and legal determinants of those procedures, also with regard to their enforcement;
6. be able to assess the contribution made to the development of international criminal law by the Nuremberg and Tokyo International Military Tribunals, the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, as well as national tribunals and so-called "mixed tribunals", and to consider the legal and political questions to which those proceedings give rise;
7. have an understanding of the law and procedure regulating the activities of the International Criminal Court.

Students must rely on the Approved Assessment which will be posted to the course homepage on the ANU Law website, prior to the commencement of the course.