Judges of the International Criminal Court

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The eighteen judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) are elected for nine-year terms by the member-countries of the Court.[1] Candidates must be nationals of those countries and they must "possess the qualifications required in their respective States for appointment to the highest judicial offices".[1]

A judge may be disqualified from "any case in which his or her impartiality might reasonably be doubted on any ground",[2] and a judge may be removed from office if he or she "is found to have committed serious misconduct or a serious breach of his or her duties" or is unable to exercise his or her functions.[3]

The judges are organized into three divisions: the Pre-Trial Division, Trial Division and Appeals Division.[4]

Contents

[edit] Qualifications, election and terms

Judge Erkki Kourula
Judge Erkki Kourula

Judges are elected to the ICC by the Assembly of States Parties, the Court's governing body.[4] They serve nine-year terms[4] and are not generally eligible for re-election.[5]

All judges must be nationals of states parties to the Rome Statute, and no two judges may be nationals of the same state.[1] They must be “persons of high moral character, impartiality and integrity who possess the qualifications required in their respective States for appointment to the highest judicial offices”,[1] and they must "have an excellent knowledge of and be fluent in at least one of the working languages of the Court" (English and French).[1]

Judges are elected from two lists of candidates. List A comprises candidates who have "established competence in criminal law and procedure, and the necessary relevant experience, whether as judge, prosecutor, advocate or in other similar capacity, in criminal proceedings".[1] List B comprises candidates who have "established competence in relevant areas of international law such as international humanitarian law and the law of human rights, and extensive experience in a professional legal capacity which is of relevance to the judicial work of the Court".[1] Elections are organised so that there are always at least nine serving judges from List A and at least five from List B.[1][6]

The Assembly of States Parties is required to "take into account the need for the representation of the principal legal systems of the world, equitable geographical representation and a fair representation of female and male judges. They shall take into account the need to include judges with legal expertise on specific issues, including, but not limited to, violence against women and children."[6]

[edit] Elections

As of January 2008, three elections have taken place.[7] In February 2003, the Assembly of States Parties elected the first bench of eighteen judges from a total of 43 candidates.[8] After this first election, the President of the Assembly of States Parties drew lots to assign the eighteen judges to terms of three, six or nine years;[1][9] those who served for three years were eligible for re-election in 2006.[5] The first bench of judges was sworn in at the inaugural session of the Court on March 11, 2003.[10]

The second election was held on 26 January 2006.[11] Five of the six outgoing judges were re-elected, but Judge Tuiloma Neroni Slade was defeated.[12] He was succeeded by Ekaterina Trendafilova.[11]

A third election took place on 3 December 2007, to replace three judges who had resigned.[13][14] The three new judges will serve the remaining portions of their predecessors' terms.[13]

[edit] Disqualification and removal from office

The prosecutor or any person being investigated or prosecuted may request the disqualification of a judge from "any case in which his or her impartiality might reasonably be doubted on any ground".[2] Any request for the disqualification of a judge from a particular case is decided by an absolute majority of the other judges.[2]

A judge may be removed from office if he or she "is found to have committed serious misconduct or a serious breach of his or her duties" or is unable to exercise his or her functions.[3] The removal of a judge requires both a two-thirds majority of the other judges and a two-thirds majority of the states parties.[3]

[edit] Presidency

Judge Philippe Kirsch, President of the Court
Judge Philippe Kirsch, President of the Court

The Presidency is the organ responsible for the proper administration of the Court.[15] It comprises the President and the First and Second Vice-Presidents — three judges of the Court who are elected to the Presidency by their fellow judges for a maximum of two three-year terms.[16]

As of October 2007, the President is Philippe Kirsch.[17] Akua Kuenyehia is First Vice-President and René Blattmann is Second Vice-President.[17] All three were elected to their current terms on 11 March 2006.[15]

[edit] Judicial divisions

The eighteen judges are organized into three divisions: the Pre-Trial Division, Trial Division and Appeals Division.[4] The Pre-Trial Division (which comprises the First Vice President and six other judges)[4] confirms indictments and issues international arrest warrants. The Trial Division (the Second Vice President and five other judges) presides over trials. Decisions of the Pre-Trial and Trial Divisions may be appealed to the Appeals Division (the President and four other judges). Judges are assigned to divisions according to their qualifications and experience.[17]

[edit] Current judges

Judges of the International Criminal Court, as of January 2008 (sortable)
Name Country Elected Term End Division
KirschPhilippe Kirsch Flag of Canada Canada 2003 2009 Appeals
BlattmanRene Blattmann Flag of Bolivia Bolivia 2003 2009 Trial
CotteBruno Cotte Flag of France France 2007 2012 Trial
DiarraFatoumata Dembele Diarra Flag of Mali Mali 2003 2012 Pre-Trial
FulfordAdrian Fulford Flag of the United Kingdom United Kingdom 2003 2012 Trial
KaulHans-Peter Kaul Flag of Germany Germany 2003, 2006[5] 2015 Pre-Trial
KourulaErkki Kourula Flag of Finland Finland 2003, 2006[5] 2015 Appeals
KuenyehiaAkua Kuenyehia Flag of Ghana Ghana 2003, 2006[5] 2015 Pre-Trial
NserekoDaniel David Ntanda Nsereko Flag of Uganda Uganda 2007 2012 Trial
OdioElizabeth Odio Benito Flag of Costa Rica Costa Rica 2003 2012 Trial
PikisGeorghios Pikis Flag of Cyprus Cyprus 2003 2009 Appeals
PillayNavanethem Pillay Flag of South Africa South Africa 2003 2009 Appeals
PolitiMauro Politi Flag of Italy Italy 2003 2009 Pre-Trial
SaigaFumiko Saiga Flag of Japan Japan 2007 2009[5] Pre-Trial
SongSang-Hyun Song Flag of South Korea South Korea 2003, 2006[5] 2015 Appeals
SteinerSylvia Steiner Flag of Brazil Brazil 2003 2012 Pre-Trial
TrendafilovaEkaterina Trendafilova Flag of Bulgaria Bulgaria 2006 2015 Pre-Trial
UsackaAnita Usacka Flag of Latvia Latvia 2003, 2006[5] 2015 Trial

As of January 2008, eight of the eighteen judges are female. The geographical representation is as follows:[18]

Regional group Number of judges
Western European and other states 6
African states 4
Latin American and Caribbean states 3
Asian states 3
Eastern European states 2

[edit] Former judges

Former judges of the International Criminal Court, as of January 2008 (sortable)
Name Country Elected Term End Notes
SladeTuiloma Neroni Slade Flag of Samoa Samoa 2003 2006 Defeated in 2006 election[12]
ClarkMaureen Harding Clark Flag of Ireland Ireland 2003 2006 Resigned to serve on the High Court of Ireland[19]
JordaClaude Jorda Flag of France France 2003 2007 Resigned "for reasons of permanent ill-health"[20]
Hudson-PhillipsKarl Hudson-Phillips Flag of Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago 2003 2007 Resigned "for personal reasons"[21]

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Article 36 of the Rome Statute. Accessed 28 January 2008.
  2. ^ a b c Article 41 of the Rome Statute. Accessed 2 January 2008.
  3. ^ a b c Article 46 of the Rome Statute. Accessed 2 January 2008.
  4. ^ a b c d e International Criminal Court. Chambers. Accessed 21 July 2007.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Article 36, paragraph 9, of the Rome Statute provides for two circumstances under which judges may be re-elected. Firstly, the six judges who were elected to three-year terms in 2003 were eligible for re-election in 2006. Secondly, any judge elected to fill a vacancy serves the remainder of his predecessor's term; if the remainder of the term is less than three years, the judge can subsequently be re-elected to a second term. (For example, Fumiko Saiga was elected in December 2007 to serve the remainder of Claude Jorda's term. Since Jorda's term expires in March 2009, Saiga will be eligible for re-election. See International Criminal Court (28 November 2007). Election of judges of the International Criminal Court: Frequently asked questionsPDF (38.6 KiB). Accessed 18 January 2008.)
  6. ^ a b International Criminal Court (10 September 2004). Procedure for the nomination and election of judges of the International Criminal CourtPDF (77.1 KiB). Accessed 16 October 2007.
  7. ^ Coalition for the International Criminal Court. Election of ICC and ASP Officials — Judges. Accessed 28 January 2008.
  8. ^ United Nations (2003). Nominations for judges of the International Criminal Court — First election. Accessed 18 January 2008.
  9. ^ Coalition for the International Criminal Court. First Election — 2003. Accessed 28 January 2008.
  10. ^ Coalition for the International Criminal Court. Judges and the Presidency. Accessed 18 January 2008.
  11. ^ a b UN News Centre (26 January 2006). At UN, 6 judges elected to the International Criminal Court. Accessed 18 January 2008.
  12. ^ a b United Nations Department of Public Information (26 January 2006). States Parties to the International Criminal Court statute elect six judges. Accessed 18 January 2008.
  13. ^ a b International Criminal Court (4 December 2007). Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute elects three judges. Accessed 5 December 2007.
  14. ^ International Criminal Court (1 June 2007). Note Verbale: Nomination and election of judgesPDF (598 KiB). Accessed 16 October 2007.
  15. ^ a b International Criminal Court. The Presidency. Accessed 21 July 2007.
  16. ^ Article 38 of the Rome Statute. Accessed 21 July 2007.
  17. ^ a b c International Criminal Court. Structure of the Court. Accessed 23 November 2006.
  18. ^ International Criminal Court (2008). The Judges - Biographical Notes. Accessed 18 January 2008.
  19. ^ International Criminal Court (11 December 2006). Resignation of Judge Maureen Harding Clark. Accessed 18 January 2008.
  20. ^ International Criminal Court (8 May 2007). Resignation of Judge Claude Jorda. Accessed 18 January 2008.
  21. ^ International Criminal Court (19 March 2007). Resignation of Judge Karl T. Hudson-Phillips. Accessed 18 January 2008.
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