The point of this blog is to capture my own class notes during my tenure as a law student. Everything on here is my own work and reflects the knowledge and understanding of the law I possessed at the time. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 License. Please do not rely on this blog for legal advice. Consult an attorney for proper legal counseling.

July 12, 2007

International Criminal Court
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The International Criminal Court (ICC):

  • 104 Countries Have Ratified (139 have signed)
  • 25 from Western Europe and Other
  • 16 from Eastern Europe
  • 22 from Latin America and the Caribbean
  • 29 from Africa
  • 12 from Asia & the Pacific
  • Not the United States
  • Court became effective July 1, 2002
How are cases initiated
  • Referred by a state party
  • Referred by the Security Council (Chapter VII of the UN Charter)
  • Initiated by the Prosecutor and Approved by the “Pre-Trial Chamber”
US Concerns about ICC include:
  • State sovereignty
  • States, not international institutions, "are primarily responsible for ensuring justice in the international system"
  • Undermines the Security Council (which should have the sole power to determine aggression)
  • Creates a prosecutorial system that is “an unchecked power”
  • Interferes with the right of self-defense by "chilling" the willingness of countries "to project power in defense of their moral and security interests"