International criminal law has developed considerably in the last decade and a half, resulting in a complex and re-invigorated discipline. This has impacted directly on the popularity of the study of the subject, particularly on postgraduate law degrees. This textbook serves these courses by providing an introduction to the principles of international criminal law and processes. Written by four international lawyers with experience of teaching international criminal law, it is accessible yet sophisticated in its approach. It covers substantive international criminal law, the institutions designed to enforce it and their procedures, and the international law applicable to domestic prosecutions of international crimes. It will be essential reading for students and teachers of international criminal law. In addition, practitioners and researchers in the field (and in related fields such as criminal law), students of international law and international relations will find this introduction invaluable.

Table of Contents

1. What is international criminal law?; 2. The objectives of international criminal law; 3. Jurisdiction; 4. National prosecutions of international crimes; 5. State Cooperation with respect to national proceedings; 6. The history of international criminal prosecutions: Nuremberg and Tokyo; 7. The ad hoc international criminal tribunals; 8. The International Criminal Court; 9. Other courts with international elements; 10. Genocide; 11. Crimes against humanity; 12. War crimes; 13. Aggression; 14. Transnational crimes, terrorism and torture; 15. General principles of liability; 16. Defences/grounds for excluding criminal responsibility; 17. Procedures of international criminal investigations and prosecutions; 18. Sentencing, penalties and reparations to victims; 19. State cooperation with international courts and tribunals; 20. Immunities; 21. Conclusions: the future of international criminal law.

Author Biography

Robert Cryer is lecturer in international law at the University of Nottingham. Hakan Friman is visiting Professor Visiting at University College London. Darryl Robinson is currently holds a position at the Prosecutor's Office at the International Criminal Court. Elizabeth Wilmshurst is a Senior Fellow at Chatham House and visiting professor at University College London.