Contemporary Issues Facing the International Criminal Court

This seminar briefly introduces students to international criminal law, then focuses on contemporary issues facing the International Criminal Court (ICC). At each weekly class meeting, we will discuss readings pertaining to a particular problem facing the ICC, including: the scope of its jurisdiction; effectuating arrest or surrender of the accused; political oversight of the Office of the Prosecutor; maximizing the ICC’s potential to deter crimes; who gets reparations and what form they should take; proving mass rape; claims of ICC bias against African countries; collection and use of cyber-evidence; and challenges of prosecuting crimes based on sexual and gender-based violence. Each student will write one or two term papers (a longer paper if only one paper) that responds to a contemporary issue of interest posed to us by the ICC Prosecutor. Student opinions will be published on www.ICCforum.com . This course satisfies the Substantial Analytical Writing (SAW) requirement. No prerequisites.