Unity and division in decision making: the law and practice on individual opinions at the ICTY

This chapter critically addresses the use of separate and dissenting opinions at the ICTY. Its central question is whether the use of individual opinions at the ICTY is in need of reform with a view to improve judicial decision-making and the confidence therein by the public. It first discusses the diverging views on the availability of individual opinions in general. Next it traces the origin and history of individual opinions in international criminal proceedings. At the heart of the chapter is the analysis of 208 individual opinions published by ICTY judges. This practice suffers of a number of flaws and should be improved in a number of areas. The conclusion contains a number of recommendations to that end, which are no longer of much assistance to the ICTY, but could be its legacy on this point for the ICC

International criminal law : a critical introduction

International Criminal Law is a guide to the relatively recent, but rapidly growing field of international criminal justice. Written by leading practitioner-academics directly involved with the International Criminal Tribunals, this book provides students with an insight into the key features of international criminal law and practice." "Zahar and Sluiter offer an analysis of the tribunal's place in the international legal order and the most important aspects of their substantive law and procedure from an entirely new and critical perspective. Legal doctrines are discussed throughout in relation to their application in real-life situations, encouraging students to engage critically with the subject and relate theory to practice.Part I. Introduction to the tribunals and international criminal law -- Part II. Critical review of the substantive law -- Part III. Procedure, evidence, and defences -- Part IV. Tribunal-state interactions : coordination and impact.530 page(s

The Legacy of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia

The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was established in 1993 and is due to complete its trials by 2011. Easily the most credible and prodigious of the international tribunals established in this period, the ICTY is by far the most important source of case law on international criminal law. This is reflected in the citations it receives by other courts and by learned commentators. Long after its dissolution, the ICTY will most likely serve as an important frame of reference for the International Criminal Court and other courts dealing with international crimes, including national courts. The publication of this book coincides with the year of cessation of trial activity at the ICTY. Its purpose is to mark this significant milestone in international law with a series of in-depth, critical reflections on the institution's legacy by eminent scholars and practitioners. In the course of seventeen chapters, the contributing authors analyze the main features of the ICTY's work in an unprecedented examination of the institution's legitimacy, core principles, methodologies, unstated assumptions, political circumstances, and impact-and indeed, its legacy.1. Introduction; I. A DISTANT COURT; 2. Assessing the Impact of the ICTY: Balancing International and Local Interests While Doing Justice; 3. The Impact Question: The ICTY and the Restoration and Maintenance of Peace; II. PROCESS AND RIGHTS: THREE VIEWS; 4. The ICTY as a Laboratory of International Criminal Procedure; 5. Procedural Structure and Features of International Criminal Justice: Lessons From the ICTY; 6. Rights in Criminal Proceedings Under the ECHR and the ICTY Statute-A Precarious Comparison; III. BATTLEFIELDS; 7. Unity and Division in Decision Making-The Law and Practice on Individual Opinions at the ICTY; 8. The Crime of Persecution in the ICTY Case Law; 9. Complicity in Genocide and the Duality of Responsibility; 10. Justifications and Excuses in International Criminal Law: An Assessment of the Case Law of the ICTY; 11. Regulation of Defense Counsel: An Evolution Toward Restriction and Legitimacy; 12. Proportional Sentences at the ICTY; IV. IMPROVISATION AND RESILIENCE; 13. The ICTY's Continuing Struggle With the Right to Self-Representation; 14. Command Responsibility at the ICTY: Three Generations of Case Law and Still Ambiguity; 15. "Special Agreements" Between Conflicting Parties in the Case Law of the ICTY; 16. The ICTY and its Relationship with National Jurisdictions: Powers, Limits, and Misconceptions; 17. Civilizing Civil War: Writing Morality as Law at the ICTY; V. LEGACY IN BRICKS AND MORTAR; 18. 'Best Before Date Shown': Residual Mechanisms at the ICTY550 page(s