The International Criminal Law Defence Seminar
18-22 April 2016
in cooperation with
the Office of Public Counsel for the Defence of the International Criminal Court
and
A seminar addressing the main issues and strategies related to the defence side of International Criminal Law will be held in Turin, at UNICRI’s premises, from 18–22 April 2016. The event is being organized by the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) in cooperation with the International Criminal Court Office of Public Counsel for the Defence (ICC-OPCD) and with the support of the Turin Bar Association and the International Association of Lawyers (Union Internationale des Avocats -UIA).
The seminar is designed for practicing and trainee lawyers interested in the practice of international criminal law whether in national or international courts and for those professionals working with organizations involved in this area.
The Seminar will consist of two modules: the first 4 days will be devoted to defence strategies and procedural issues before international jurisdictions, whilst the last day will focus on the collection of evidence of war crimes at the field level and their use before national and international jurisdictions. The goal of the seminar is to provide current and future practitioners with tools to investigate international crimes and ensure an accurate implementation of criminal justice.
The five-day seminar will cover many topics related to International Criminal Law and International Criminal Defence. During the first day of the training, participants will be introduced to the fundamental principles of International Criminal Law (ICL) and its investigative and procedural mechanism. The following three days will specifically tackle several aspects related to International Criminal Defence including an overview on defence ethics during investigations, the mechanisms behind plea negotiations, the structuring of legal arguments, strategies related to direct and cross-examination of witnesses and the grounds for presenting appeals. The last day of the seminar will be, instead focused on the aspects related to the collection and analysis of evidence at the field level and their use before national and international jurisdictions.
Furthermore, participants will greatly benefit from the direct experience of the experts steering the lectures and the practical exercises: Ms. Marie O’ Leary, consultant at ICC-OPCD; Ms. Colleen Rohan, Criminal Attorney practicing before international tribunals and President of the Defence Counsel Practicing before the ICTY; and Mr. William Wiley, Executive Director of the Commission for International Justice and Accountability (CIJA), Former International Legal Advisor at the Iraqi High Tribunal, Former Human Rights Officer for the UN Assistance Mission to Iraq and Former Investigator and Intelligence Analyst at the ICC, ICTR and ICTY.
The working language will be English. The deadline for applications is 3 April 2016. For more information please visit the Seminar webpage or send a message to seminars@unicri.it
The agenda and the registration form are available below.