When national courts judge international crimes like genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, they can draw on both national and international criminal law. The relationship between these two bodies of law is not always clear. Can national courts base prosecutions of international crimes directly on international criminal law? In a world where national laws often proscribe international crimes in an incomplete or deficient manner, this question has considerable practical relevance for the enforcement of international criminal law. Yet, it has received little attention in doctrine while practice shows widely divergent approaches of national courts to the feasibility of direct application. The author examines the concept of the direct application of international criminal law in national courts. He provides a rich description of the relevant practice in many different States ranging from Argentina to Senegal. Easily accessible, this book is a valuable tool for academics and practitioners alike.

This book explores the way domestic courts contribute to the maintenance of theinternational of law by providing judicial control over the exercises of public powers that may conflict with international law. The main focus of the book will be on judicial control of exercise of public powers by states. Key cases that will be reviewed in this book, and that will provide empirical material for the main propositions, include Hamdan, in which the US Supreme Court reviewed detention by the United States of suspected terrorists against the 1949 Geneva Conventions; Adalah, in which the Supreme Court of Israel held that the use of local residents by Israeli soldiers in arresting a wanted terrorist is unlawful under international law, and the Narmada case, in which the Indian Supreme Court reviewed the legality of displacement of people in connection with the building of a dam in the river Narmada under the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention 1957 (nr 107). This book explores what it is that international law requires, expects, or aspires that domestic courts do. Against this backdrop it maps patterns of domestic practice in the actual or possible application of international law and determines what such patterns mean for the protection of the international rule of law.

This unique two-volume work seeks for the first time to address in a comprehensive fashion both "substantive" and "procedural" aspects of international criminal law as applied by international and national courts. Substantive topics include individual criminal responsibility, genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, crimes against UN and associated personnel, core crimes and defenses, while procedural aspects include the right of suspects and accused, the protection of victims and witnesses, and pre-trial, trial and appeal procedures and practices. In addressing these subjects the work focuses on the practical application of the relevant norms and provides both detailed commentaries by experts in the field "(Commentary volume)," as well as the underlying documentation for each of the topics addressed "(Documents and Cases volume)," With the establishment of the International Criminal Court, the experiences of other international courts, notably the ad hoc tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda as well as their predecessors, in addressing these issues are of great value and this work is intended to assist practitioners and scholars alike. Additionally, because national courts still have a vital role to play in the application of these norms, attention is given to prosecutions in national jurisdictions. With this work the editors seek both to assist the reader in understanding these important concepts as well as to provide the background documentation such that the reader can conduct his or her own research and come to his or her own conclusions.

The Oxford ILDC online database, an online collection of domestic court decisions which apply international law, has been providing scholars with insights for many years. This ILDC Casebook is the perfect companion, introducing key court decisions with brief introductory and connecting texts. An ideal text for practitioners, judged, government officials, as well as for students on international law courses, the ILDC Casebook explains the theories and doctrines underlying the use by domestic courts of international law, and illustrates the key importance of domestic courts in the development of international law.

Vol. II, Part 1.