The Jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court

This book embarks on a comprehensive exploration of the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and elucidates the three foundational aspects of its jurisdiction as laid out in the Rome Statute: the preconditions for exercising jurisdiction (Article 12 ICCRSt), its substantive competence regarding core crimes (Articles 5-8bis ICCRSt), and the principle of complementarity (Article 17§1(a) ICCRSt).

This principle, crucial to understanding the ICC’s ‘ultimate jurisdiction’, is invoked only when a State Party demonstrates an inability or unwillingness to genuinely undertake investigation or prosecution. The book further probes the ‘negative preconditions’ of the Court’s jurisdiction, in particular, immunities (Article 27 ICCRSt) and exceptions through Security Council referrals (Articles 13(b) and 15 ICCRSt).

Intended for students, scholars, and practitioners alike, this second edition offers invaluable insights into the ICC’s jurisdiction, making a notable contribution to the existing literature. Importantly, it also navigates emerging fields of international criminal law, addressing topical and thought-provoking subjects such as ecocide, cyber warfare, automated lethal weapons, artificial intelligence, and the legal complexities arising from the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Winner of the Second International Science Prize 2024 of the Hans Günter Brauch Foundation for Peace and Ecology in the Anthropocene (HGBS) on the Theme: Ecocide: Impacts of Wars and/or Climate Change on Food Security Since 1945.