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2010/1 Module Catalogue
 Module Code: LAWM014 Module Title: INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL LAW
Module Provider: School of Law Short Name: LAWM014
Level: M Module Co-ordinator: RAUXLOH RE Dr (Schl of Law)
Number of credits: 30 Number of ECTS credits: 15
 
Module Availability

1st Semester

 

Assessment Pattern

Unit(s) of Assessment

 

Weighting towards Module Mark (%)

 

Coursework

 

75%

 

Presentation

 

25%

 

Module Overview

This module considers International Criminal Law

 

Prerequisites/Co-requisites

None

 

Module Aims

This module is intended to equip students with a thorough appreciatin of the complexities of International Criminal Law.

 

 

The emphasis is on the substansive and procedural law of the International Court of Justice, but the course will also compare other international or semi-international criminal tribunals and alternatives of international criminal justice.

 

Learning Outcomes

In order to achieve the Masters level standard for the award of credits for this module, the students must meet the following criteria related to the learning outcomes described above, upon which basis the assessments will be marked.

 

 

They must be able to demonstrate:

 

·             A critical appreciation of the historical development of International Criminal Law (ICL)

 

·             A critical awareness of the context of ICL today

 

·             Detailed knowledge of the ad hoc ICL tribunals and alternative responses to large scales atrocities

 

·             The ability to critically assess the relationship between ICL and national criminal law

 

·             Detailed knowledge of the major crimes according to the Rose Statute of the International Criminal Court

 

·             Critical awareness of the main issues of the procedures of the International Criminal Court

 

·             A comprehensive and systematic understanding of the relevant International Criminal Law principles, rules and statutory provisions

 

·             The ability to analyse International Criminal Law problems and identify the relevant rules and issues

 

·             Show an ability to understand the complexities within this area of International Criminal Law concerning the interpretation and application of principles of law

 

·             A critical engagement with the essential foreground and background reading, and an awareness of the main currents of critical writing in the area

 

·             A sustained argument or analysis based upon the acquisition of logical, defensible conclusions and evaluations, following on from the engagement and development of awareness outlined above

 

Module Content

International Criminal Law (ICL) is a relatively new branch of International Law, which has emerged particularly since the WWII by the international community determined to bring to justice those who have committed atrocious violations of human rights.  One of the key responses to the propagation of major armed conflicts in many parts of the world since the 1990s, as well as materialisation of new threats of international terrorism, was the strengthening of the protection of fundamental values through the system of International Criminal Justice.

 

 

This module will look at the criminal responsibility of individuals under international law, and the mechanisms provided by international law for the enforcement of these offences and the norms and enforcement mechanisms of International Criminal Law, and examine the chief crimes of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

 

 

Students will explore the main weaknesses of the Rome Stature and the ICC’s dependencies on and relationships with State-Parties, The UN Security Council and Non-State Parties.  In addition, the course will critically asses the political context and the future development of International Criminal Law including the non-legal obstacles that impede the effective prosecution of international criminal offences.

 

 

 

Methods of Teaching/Learning

8 x 3-hour seminars.  The seminars will be interactive and students will be expected to come prepared for the seminar and engage actively in discussions

 

Selected Texts/Journals

Essential reading

 

Robert Cryer et al., An Introduction to International Criminal Law & Procedure, 2nd ed ( Cambridge : CUP, 2010)

 

 

Background reading

 

Broomhall, B. International Justice and the International Criminal Court: Between Sovereignty and the Rules of Law ( Oxford : OUP, 2004)

 

Cassese, A., Gaeta , P. & Jones, J. The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: A Commentary ( Oxford : OUP, 2002)

 

Dôrmann, K. Elements of War Crimes Under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICRC/Cambridge, 2003)

 

John, R. W. D., Jones, J. & Powles, S. (Eds) International Criminal Practice: The International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the International Criminal Court, the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the East Timor Special Panel for Serious Crimes, War Crimes Prosecutions in Kosovo (Oxford: OUP, 2003)

 

Cassese, A. International Criminal Law ( Oxford : OUP, 2003)

 

Jørgensen, N. The Responsibility of States for International Crimes ( Oxford : OUP, 2000)

 

Kittichaisaree, K. International Criminal Law ( Oxford : OUP, 2001)

 

Mattraux, G. International Crimes and the Ad Hoc Tribunals ( Oxford : OUP, 2004)

 

Ratner, S & Abrams, J. Accountability for Human Rights Atrocities in International Law ( Oxford : OUP, 2001)

 

Roberts, A. & Guelff, R. Documents of the Laws of War (3rd Edition, Oxford : OUP, 2000)

 

Romano, C., Nollkaemper, A. & Kleffner, J. (Eds) Internationalized Criminal Courts: , East Timor, Kosovo and ( Oxford : OUP, 2004)

 

Safferling, C. Towards an International Criminal Procedure ( Oxford : OUP, 2000)

 

Schabas, W. Genocide in International Law: The Crime of Crimes (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000)

 

Schabas, W. International Criminal Court (3rd Edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007)

 

Simbeye, Y. Immunity and International Criminal Law ( Aldershot : Ashgate, 2004)

 

Sunga, L. The Emerging System of International Criminal Law (London: Kluwer, 1997)

 

Vigorito, R. “The Evolution and Establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC) – A Selected Bibliography of Secondary Sources” 30 International Journal of Legal Information 92

 

Zappalà, S. Human Rights in International Criminal Proceedings ( Oxford : OUP, 2003)

 

 

Electronic sources

 

http://icc-cpi.int (International Criminal Court)

 

http://www.un.org/icty (International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia)

 

http://ictr.org (International Criminal Tribunal for )

 

http://sc-sl.org (

Special Court
for )

 

http://www.un.org (United Nations)

 

http://www.nesl.edu/research/warcrim.cfm (New England School of Law)

 

http://www.nls.ntu.ac.uk/crl/ictp (International Criminal Trial Project, Nottingham Trent University )

 

http://www.icrc.org/eng/ihl (International Committee of the Red Cross)

 

http://sim.law.uu.nl/SIM/CaseLaw/tribunals.nsf/(Decisions)?OpenView (Netherlands Institute of International Law, Faculty of Law, ICTR case law)

 

http://www.ictj.org (The International Centre for Transnational Justice)

 

 

Legal instruments

 

Rome Statute for the International Criminal Court

 

http://www.un.org/law/icc/statute/romefra.htm

 

ICC: Finalized Draft Text of the Elements of Crimes

 

http://www.un.org/law/icc/statute/elements/elefra.htm

 

ICC: Rules of Procedure and Evidence

 

http://www1.umn.edu/humanarts/instree/iccrulesofprocedure.html

 

1949 Geneva Conventions and 1977 Protocols

 

http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/WebCONVFULL?OpenView

 

 

Journals

 

Journal of the International Criminal Court

 

Last Updated

10/02/2011