Using Strategic Litigation and Universal Jurisdiction to Advance Accountability for Serious International Crimes

This article addresses what the increased role of strategic litigation and universal jurisdiction for serious international crimes in domestic courts means for international criminal justice by exploring the opportunities and risks as well as implications for the field. A number of key overlapping and countervailing trends stand out: (i) a growing landscape where domestic legal systems are playing larger roles; (ii) a constantly proliferating and complex transnational network of actors – formal and informal – involved in the pursuit of accountability; and (iii) a risk of further entrenching Eurocentrism of international criminal justice resulting from the dominance of European domestic courts for the prosecution of international crimes under universal jurisdiction. The article concludes by stressing the importance of strategic litigation and universal jurisdiction and the role played by civil society in pursuing accountability for serious international crimes, and puts forward some modest recommendations for mitigating some of the identified risks

Travelling in the Classroom: Podcasting as an Active-Learning Tool for Interdisciplinarity

Interdisciplinarity in the classroom is predominantly championed around a need to address pressing social problems by integrating knowledge from diverse disciplines. But can interdisciplinary teaching take shape without the usual problem-solving frame? And are there new methods/mediums through which to explore interdisciplinarity? These questions have led to new and promising developments related to podcasting, active learning, and interdisciplinarity in the classroom. Through the lens of Travelling Concepts, we reflect on our experiences in the making and using of the podcast series -- Travelling Concepts on Air -- to better understand interdisciplinarity. We show the value of students not only listening to podcasts as a supplementary means of learning, but also creating podcasts as a form of active learning

A New Frame? Transforming Policing through Guarantees of Non-Repetition

Using qualitative legal scholarship, combined with literature analysis from post-conflict peacebuilding and police studies, this article provides a normative and theoretical lens through which police and other actors can view and carry out reform efforts. It explores whether and how the concept of guarantees of non-repetition could contribute to or reframe discussions in order to prevent future violence and facilitate lasting institutional changes. The article examines the development of a broader approach to security sector reform and explores guarantees of non-repetition and the conceptual confusion it has encountered. It teases out the main aspects of guarantees of nonrepetition, including its human rights elements, such as due diligence obligations. Finally, it addresses how guarantees of non-repetition provide a normative institutional policy framework that offers the possibility to shift the rhetoric to focus on State obligations that are context-driven. As a result, guarantees of non-repetition could prove useful when addressing police reform

The Role of Universities and Law Schools in Documenting Serious International Crimes and Advancing the Rule of Law

Looking at how the rule of law is protected, defended, or even advanced by non-state actors operating below the state level is vitally important in understanding how rule of law principles get recognized, operationalized, and implemented. This article aims to contribute to a growing strand of scholarship looking at how the rule of law is protected and bolstered ‘from below.' It does this by exploring the role of a specific type of civil society actor in the documentation and investigation of serious international crimes and efforts at accountability, namely the university. Over the last decade, there has been a transformation of human rights fact-finding and how it impacts the rule of law and accountability for serious international crimes. Universities, often through their legal clinics, are making significant contributions to the rule of law and accountability efforts. It explores what implications the role of independent documenter or investigator has for academic institutions in protecting and advancing the rule of law. It calls for greater recognition of societal engagement with universities and for more research on the impacts of universities and students on advancing the rule of law and accountability for serious international crimes

The Rule of Law from Below – A Concept Under Development

The rule of law is a central notion in legal thought and in the practice of democratic states. While a contested term, scholars have articulated its contours - both formal and substantive. This includes ideas such as legal certainty, prospectivity, access to justice, and the fact that everyone should be accountable under the law. Much of the scholarship has centred on states and international organisations as the primary entities responsible for protecting the rule of law. By contrast, the relationship between individuals and groups of people in civil society vis-à-vis the rule of law is under-explored in (international) law. This special issue is therefore dedicated to elaborating upon this relationship - the ‘rule of law from below.‘ This Introduction sets out the concept and illustrates it with examples of the innovative ways that people are using in practice to support the rule of law from below. While noting that the concept of ‘rule of law from below’ is one under development, we argue that there is much value in investigating instances where actors beyond formal state institutions, who have no constitutional or other formal legal role, take it upon themselves to uphold and defend the rule of law. This is especially important in today's global context of shifts in power between state and non-state actors, as well as pervasive democratic and rule-of-law backsliding

The Role of Universities and Law Schools in Documenting Serious International Crimes and Advancing the Rule of Law

Looking at how the rule of law is protected, defended, or even advanced by non-state actors operating below the state level is vitally important in understanding how rule of law principles get recognized, operationalized, and implemented. This article aims to contribute to a growing strand of scholarship looking at how the rule of law is protected and bolstered ‘from below.' It does this by exploring the role of a specific type of civil society actor in the documentation and investigation of serious international crimes and efforts at accountability, namely the university. Over the last decade, there has been a transformation of human rights fact-finding and how it impacts the rule of law and accountability for serious international crimes. Universities, often through their legal clinics, are making significant contributions to the rule of law and accountability efforts. It explores what implications the role of independent documenter or investigator has for academic institutions in protecting and advancing the rule of law. It calls for greater recognition of societal engagement with universities and for more research on the impacts of universities and students on advancing the rule of law and accountability for serious international crimes

Using Strategic Litigation and Universal Jurisdiction to Advance Accountability for Serious International Crimes

This article addresses what the increased role of strategic litigation and universal jurisdiction for serious international crimes in domestic courts means for international criminal justice by exploring the opportunities and risks as well as implications for the field. A number of key overlapping and countervailing trends stand out: (i) a growing landscape where domestic legal systems are playing larger roles; (ii) a constantly proliferating and complex transnational network of actors – formal and informal – involved in the pursuit of accountability; and (iii) a risk of further entrenching Eurocentrism of international criminal justice resulting from the dominance of European domestic courts for the prosecution of international crimes under universal jurisdiction. The article concludes by stressing the importance of strategic litigation and universal jurisdiction and the role played by civil society in pursuing accountability for serious international crimes, and puts forward some modest recommendations for mitigating some of the identified risks

A New Frame? Transforming Policing through Guarantees of Non-Repetition

Using qualitative legal scholarship, combined with literature analysis from post-conflict peacebuilding and police studies, this article provides a normative and theoretical lens through which police and other actors can view and carry out reform efforts. It explores whether and how the concept of guarantees of non-repetition could contribute to or reframe discussions in order to prevent future violence and facilitate lasting institutional changes. The article examines the development of a broader approach to security sector reform and explores guarantees of non-repetition and the conceptual confusion it has encountered. It teases out the main aspects of guarantees of nonrepetition, including its human rights elements, such as due diligence obligations. Finally, it addresses how guarantees of non-repetition provide a normative institutional policy framework that offers the possibility to shift the rhetoric to focus on State obligations that are context-driven. As a result, guarantees of non-repetition could prove useful when addressing police reform