8.3 International Courts and Tribunals

International courts play a crucial role in resolving disputes between nations and prosecuting serious crimes. The International Court of Justice handles state-to-state conflicts, while the International Criminal Court focuses on individuals accused of grave offenses.

Ad hoc tribunals have addressed specific conflicts, like those in Yugoslavia and Rwanda. Regional human rights courts, such as the European Court of Human Rights, protect individual rights and shape domestic laws in their respective regions.

International Courts

Jurisdiction of International Court of Justice

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• Principal judicial organ of UN established 1945 in The Hague, Netherlands resolves legal disputes between states and provides advisory opinions to UN bodies
• Contentious cases between states and advisory opinions on legal questions form jurisdiction based on state consent
• 15 judges elected by UN General Assembly and Security Council serve 9-year terms with re-election possibility
• Applies international treaties, customs, and general principles of law to settle disputes
• Limited to state parties, excludes individuals or organizations from direct participation

Role of International Criminal Court

• Permanent court established by 1998 Rome Statute began operations 2002 prosecutes individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and aggression
• Complementarity principle allows ICC action when national courts unwilling or unable to prosecute
• Deters future crimes and ends impunity for high-level perpetrators through international prosecutions
• Faces challenges from limited membership (USA, China, Russia not parties), state cooperation issues, and resource constraints

Ad Hoc and Regional Courts

Effectiveness of ad hoc tribunals

• ICTY (1993) and ICTR (1994) established by UN Security Council prosecuted crimes in Yugoslav Wars and Rwandan Genocide
• Successfully prosecuted high-level officials (Slobodan Milošević, Jean Kambanda) developed international criminal law jurisprudence
• Contributed to historical record and reconciliation efforts in affected regions
• Limited by temporary nature, high costs, lengthy proceedings, and capacity to try all perpetrators

Impact of regional human rights courts

• European Court of Human Rights enforces European Convention on Human Rights for 47 Council of Europe states issues binding decisions (Loizidou v. Turkey)
• Inter-American Court interprets American Convention on Human Rights for OAS members provides advisory opinions and contentious jurisdiction (Velásquez Rodríguez v. Honduras)
• Protect individual rights, develop regional standards, influence domestic laws (incorporation of ECHR into UK Human Rights Act)
• Face challenges in judgment enforcement, case backlogs, varying state compliance levels