Content area
Full Text
Substantive and Procedural Aspects of International Criminal Law: TheExperience ofInternational and National Courts. Edited by Gabrielle Kirk McDonald and Olivia Swaak-Goldman. The Hague, London, Boston: Kluwer Law International, 2000. Vols. 1-2 (vol. 1: pp. xvi, 705, index; vol. 2: pt. 1, pp. xvi, 587; pt. 2, pp. xviii, 2451). $742, EU635.50.
With this two-volume set of commentary, documents, and case reports, Gabrielle Kirk McDonald and Olivia Swaak-Goldman make a significant contribution to the study of international criminal law. Volume 1 presents commentary on the substantive, procedural, and practical aspects of international criminal law, discusses rights and points of procedure before international and domestic tribunals, and includes an extensive index. Volume 2 is divided into two parts; the first contains selected international, regional, and municipal documents, such as the U.S. Alien Tort Claims Act and the Torture Victim Protection Act; the second presents various international, regional, and municipal cases that are less accessible than the documents and have been conveniently compiled for the scholar and practitioner. This set is clearly one of the "must consult" materials on current issues and trends in international criminal law.decision making and procedure.
The editors' goal, they explain, is "to assist practitioners, scholars and students in moving beyond the broad conceptions of ... crimes to arrive at a clear understanding of the parameters of the substantive offences and procedural requirements" (p. xiii). Although volume 1 takes substantial strides toward this goal, certain factors hamper its progress, namely, the evident disagreement among several authors on certain points, the dissent of some authors from trends in ICTR and ICTY decisions, and the fact that some issues remain unresolved. As former ICTY Prosecutor Louise Arbour notes in the foreword, "International criminal law itself is still a developing body of law. For instance, certain elements of offences and doctrines of criminal responsibility, and a myriad of issues of procedure and evidence remain to be elaborated in all their detail" (p. x).
Volume 1's first chapter, on individual criminal responsibility, offers an interesting and detailed discussion by Kai Ambos of the various trends in decision making that occurred during the World War 11 era and under the auspices of the ICTY (unfortunately, the discussion neglects the decisions of the ICTR), and summarizes the author's views on...