Course 2026-2027 a.y.

The course focuses, on the one hand, on the international rules governing states’ assertion and exercise of their respective national criminal jurisdictions and, on the other, on the body of international law relating to international crimes (such as genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, torture, slavery, piracy, and the wide range of treaty crimes loosely described as ‘terrorist’) and international criminal courts (from the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the International Criminal Court).

The course is structured as follows:

PART ONE

FOUNDATIONAL CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES

• The International Rules on National Criminal Jurisdiction
• The Concept of an International Crime
• The Types of Criminal Tribunal

PART TWO

THE SUBSTANTIVE LAW OF INTERNATIONAL CRIMES

Crimes under Customary International Law

• The Crimes
• Modes of Responsibility
• Grounds for Excluding Responsibility

Treaty Crimes

• The Crimes and Their Modes of Responsibility
• The Obligations and Rights of States Parties

PART THREE

THE SUPPRESSION OF INTERNATIONAL CRIMES

Municipal Law and Courts

• Substantive Law, Jurisdiction, Prosecution, and Courts
• Immunity and Inviolability
• Statutory Limitation and Amnesty

International Criminal Courts

• Past international criminal courts (I): The International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg and the International Military Tribunal for the Far East at Tokyo
• Past international criminal courts (II): The International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda and their Residual Mechanism; the Special Court for Sierra Leone and the Residual Special Court for Sierra Leone
• The International Criminal Court

— Have a doctrinal and practical knowledge and understanding of international criminal law as a whole

— Know and understand the foundational concepts and principles of international criminal law (the international rules on national criminal jurisdiction; the concept of an international crime; the types of criminal tribunal), the substantive law of international crimes, both customary (the crimes; modes of responsibility; grounds for excluding responsibility) and treaty-based (the crimes and their modes of responsibility; the obligations and rights of states parties), and the suppression of international crimes in both municipal law and courts (substantive law, jurisdiction, prosecution, and courts; immunity and inviolability; statutory limitation and amnesty) and in international courts (past international criminal courts; the International Criminal Court)

— Reflect conceptually, appreciate critically, and write insightfully on the law and practice of international criminal law as a whole

— Apply to concrete factual scenarios the international rules on national criminal jurisdiction, the substantive law of international crimes, both customary (the crimes; modes of responsibility; grounds for excluding responsibility) and treaty-based (the crimes and their modes of responsibility; the obligations and rights of states parties), the international rules on immunity from national criminal jurisdiction and inviolability from foreign executive measures of physical constraint, and the international principles and rules pertaining to international criminal courts in general and to the International Criminal Court specifically

— Reflect conceptually, appreciate critically, and write insightfully on the foundational concepts and principles of international criminal law (the international rules on national criminal jurisdiction; the concept of an international crime; the types of criminal tribunal), the substantive law of international crimes, both customary (the crimes; modes of responsibility; grounds for excluding responsibility) and treaty-based (the crimes and their modes of responsibility; the obligations and rights of states parties), and the suppression of international crimes in both municipal law and courts (substantive law, jurisdiction, prosecution, and courts; immunity and inviolability; statutory limitation and amnesty) and in international courts (past international criminal courts; the International Criminal Court)

• Lectures
• Practical Exercises

The final lesson on each topic consists of a ‘tutorial’ in which the professor and students answer together some or all of the tutorial questions for that topic. The tutorial questions are designed to further a student's knowledge and understanding of each topic and to hone the student's skill in applying that knowledge and understanding. They reflect the two styles of questions that will appear in the exam, namely 'problem-style' questions, involving the application of the law to hypothetical factual situations, and 'essay-style' questions, involving more conceptual discussion of the law.

The exercises consist of a lesson at the end of each topic in which students are lead through both 'problem-style' questions, involving the application of the law to hypothetical factual situations, and 'essay-style' questions, involving more conceptual discussion of the law.

The general exam, which lasts two (2) hours, consists of a choice of any two (2) questions from a total of eight (8) questions on the exam paper. The questions on the exam paper comprise an equal mix of 'problem-style' questions, involving the application of the law to hypothetical factual situations, and 'essay-style' questions, involving more conceptual discussion of the law. No distinction is drawn between attending and non-attending students with respect to the general exam. The grade in the general exam constitutes 100% of a student's final grade for the course.

The textbook for the course is Roger O'Keefe, International Criminal Law (2015) (available online via Bocconi library). There is no need for students to acquire the textbook.

The textbook will be supplemented by further reading for each topic, available online again via Bocconi library or via the course page on Blackboard.