The course looks at the rules, concepts, principles, institutional architecture, and enforcement of what we call international criminal law or international criminal justice, or, sometimes, the law of war crimes.
The focus of the course is the area of international criminal law concerned with traditional “war crimes” and, in particular, four of the core crimes set out in the Rome Statute (war crimes, torture as a crime against humanity, genocide and aggression). It adopts a historical, philosophical and practical focus throughout, though the course is mainly directed at the conceptual problems associated with the prosecution of war criminals and, more broadly, legalised retribution. Attention, in this respect, will be directed towards the moral and jurisprudential dilemmas associated with bureaucratic criminality and individual culpability.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
Upon completion, a participant should:
- have an understanding of international criminal law and its basic principles, concepts and methodologies;
- be familiar with the sources and methods of research in the field of international criminal law;
- have an understanding of the evolution of the concept of international crime, from piracy juris gentium to the drafting of the Statute of the International Criminal Court;
- be able to examine the role played by the United Nations and its subsidiary bodies in the development of international criminal law
- be able to examine the different international and national procedures for prosecuting or otherwise dealing with international crimes, and the political and legal determinants of those procedures, also with regard to their enforcement;
- be able to assess the contribution made to the development of international criminal law by the Nuremberg and Tokyo International Military Tribunals, the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, as well as national tribunals and so-called "mixed tribunals", and to consider the legal and political questions to which those proceedings give rise;
- have an understanding of the law and procedure regulating the activities of the International Criminal Court.
Other Information
This is an intensive course with 4 days of compulsory attendance required (see LLM timetable for dates).Approximately 6 weeks from the completion of the intensive your final assessment will be due. Contact with fellow students and the convenor, both prior to the intensive and after, is conducted via the Wattle course site.
Indicative Assessment
Students must rely on the approved Course Study Guide which will be posted to the Wattle course site approximately 4 weeks prior to the commencement of the course.It is likely that assessment will consist of a major research essay (approx 6000 wds).
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
26 Contact Hours (Intensive Delivery over 4 days) plus private study and reading time.
Click here for the current LLM Masters Program Timetable
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
There is no prescribed text though Simpson Law, War and Crime (2007) is recommended.Preliminary Reading
Readings and materials will be listed in the Course Study Guide which will be available on the Wattle course site approximately 4 weeks from the commencement of the course.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 3
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $2958 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $4146 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Autumn Session
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1573 | 27 Apr 2015 | 27 Apr 2015 | 08 May 2015 | 12 Jun 2015 | In Person | N/A |