• Home
• Study
• Study Information
• Modules
• Module Information

The International Criminal Court: Law and Practice

Module description

Since the entry into force of its Statute in 2002, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has become a major international institution, attracting both praise and criticism. With this module, you will gain complete insight into its functioning. You will explore the investigation of atrocities, rules of evidence (including scientific and digital), modes of liability, defences, and sentencing and critically reflect on issues of jurisdiction, selection of cases, State cooperation as well as on the place of victims, witnesses and culture in the proceedings. Where relevant, attention will be paid to other international(ised) tribunals and courts.

With this module, you will assess the effectiveness of the ICC as well as the challenges it faces in an international legal environment torn between globalisation and fragmentation.

While prior knowledge of public international law is desirable, it is not mandatory and there are no pre-requisites for you to take this module.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The module is based on research-enriched teaching and aims at providing you with the necessary skills to critically reflect on the law and practice of the ICC as well as on its future. The module also aims to equip you with the required knowledge to understand the evolution of international crimes, the concept of individual criminal responsibility, and the functioning of the ICC. The in-depth analysis of key decisions and judgments issued by the Court will provide you with the ability to apply knowledge to practical cases and situations, and to identify and address challenges related to the investigation and prosecution of international crimes.

The module provides you with specialist knowledge that is key to embarking on a career in international criminal law and justice, including within the domestic arena.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate specialised knowledge and understanding of the law, practice and functioning of the International Criminal Court;
• 2. Demonstrate specialised knowledge and understanding to solve problems raised by the exercise of the International Criminal Court’s jurisdiction.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. Demonstrate specialised knowledge and understanding of international criminal law, procedure and case law as well as of the functioning of international criminal courts and tribunals;
• 4. Demonstrate enhanced knowledge and understanding of the global context in which the International Criminal Court operates;
• 5. • Demonstrate the ability to to critically analyse, contextualise, comment and discuss the case law issued by the International Criminal Court.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 6. • Independently collect, evaluate and apply relevant legislation, jurisprudence and literature related to a complex problem of international criminal law and procedure;
• 7. • Independently engage in academic discourse on international criminal law and procedure with peers from a variety of backgrounds;
• 8. • Make a complex argument concerning international criminal law and procedure understandable in written and spoken English to peers from a diversity of backgrounds.

Syllabus plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:

• Introduction: international criminal law and procedure; International criminal tribunals and courts
• Territorial jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court; Investigation of situations and need for State cooperation; Selection of cases
• Subject matter jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court: genocide; crimes against humanity; war crimes, aggression
• Modes of participation and liability
• Trial procedure, including fairness of proceedings, available defences, admissibility of evidence, and participation of victims and witnesses
• Sentencing and post-trial procedure
• Critical reflection: successes, challenges, and criticisms of the International Criminal Court

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• K. Ambos (ed.), Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court – Article-by-Article Commentary, 4^th edition, München: Beck/Nomos/Hart, 2022.
• P. Clark, Distant Justice – The Impact of the International Criminal Court on African Politics, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018.
• K.M. Clarke, Affective Justice – The International Criminal Court and the Pan-Africanist Pushback, Durham and London: Duke University Press, 2019.
• R. Cryer, D. Robinson, S. Vasiliev, An Introduction to International Criminal Law and Procedure, 4^th edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019.
• W.A. Schabas, The International Criminal Court – A Commentary on the Rome Statute, 2^nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016.
• W.A. Schabas, An Introduction to the International Criminal Court, 6^th edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020.
• C. Stahn (ed.), The Law and Practice of the International Criminal Court, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015.
• C. Stahn, A Critical Introduction to International Criminal Law, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2019.

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE – Faculty to provide hyperlink to appropriate pages
• International Criminal Court: http://www.icc-cpi.int/
• International Criminal Court Forum: https://iccforum.com
• International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals: http://www.irmct.org/en
• International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia: http://www.icty.org/
• International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda: http://unictr.irmct.org/

Indicative learning resources - Other resources

• Journal of International Criminal Justice (JICJ)
• International Criminal Law Review (ICLR)
• Leiden Journal of International Law (LJIL)
• American Journal of International Law (AJIL)
• European Journal of International Law (EJIL)
• International and Comparative Law Quarterly (ICLQ)
• Journal of Conflict and Security Law (JCSL)

Key words search

International criminal law, crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes, aggression, International Criminal Court, Rome Statute.