A Commentary on the Statutes of the ICC, the ICTY and the ICTR:

The annotated Code of International Criminal Law and Procedure is the first commentary that discusses both the ICC Statute and the Statutes of the ad hoc tribunals in a systematic way. This is supplemented by a discussion of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the ICC.

The ICC is still very much a fledging institution. Its Statute has many ambiguities, and is constantly tested by new realities and unforeseen challenges on the ground. The jurisprudence interpreting the ICC-Statute is rapidly evolving, and the legal commentary related to the Court is expanding swiftly.
As such a recently update Commentary on the Rome Statute is a must for every practitioner and academic in the field.

The practicability of the Commentary is further enhanced by the addition of an annotation of the ICTY and ICTR Statutes, containing the last developments in the jurisprudence of the ad hoc tribunals, which is frequently relied upon in the filings of participants before the ICC and in the judicial decisions by the different Chambers

The ICC, together with the ICTY and ICTR, form a single genus, clearly distinguishable from all other bodies in the field of International Criminal Law. The ICC has built and will continue to build on the precedent of the ad hoc tribunals. 


By putting together the annotated Statutes of the 3 intertwined Courts, the Larcier Code of International Criminal Law and Procedure is both valuable and practical for practitioners and academics in the field. The annotations also include references to the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the ICC.

Commentary written by both practitioners and academics, with either a civil or a common law background:

Both practitioners (Trial Lawyers, Legal Officers, Defense Counsels) and academics specialized in the field of International Criminal Law,  coming from different countries all over the world, with either a common law or a civil law background,  have contributed to the project.
This provides an extremely potent and well-rounded source of experience that enriches this work.

The authors have outlined the different approaches of the common law and the continental visions, giving an impartial analysis of how an article has been interpreted in various, sometimes contrasting, ways.

Table of content

Stat. 17 July 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Resolution 827,  25 May 1993 Adopted by the Security Council at its 3217th meeting (UN Security Council, 27 April 1996)

Resolution 955, 8 November 1994 Adopted by the Security Council at its 3453rd meeting (UN Security Council, 27 April 1996)

Rules 9  September 2002 – International Criminal Court – Rules of Procedure and Evidence*
* Explanatory note: The Rules of Procedure and Evidence are an instrument for the application of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, to which they are subordinate in all cases. In elaborating the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, care has been taken to avoid rephrasing and, to the extent possible, repeating the provisions of the Statute. Direct references to the Statute have been included in the Rules, where appropriate, in order to emphasize the relationship between the Rules and the Rome Statute, as provided for in article 51, in particular, paragraphs 4 and 5. In all cases, the Rules of Procedure and Evidence should be read in conjunction with and subject to the provisions of the Statute. The Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the International Criminal Court do not affect the procedural rules for any national court or legal system for the purpose of national proceedings.

Regl. 26 May 2004