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Part 5 Investigation and Prosecution: Enquête Et Poursuites, Art.61 Confirmation of the charges before trial/Confirmation des charges avant le procès

William A. Schabas

From: The International Criminal Court: A Commentary on the Rome Statute (2nd Edition)

William A Schabas

From: Oxford Public International Law (http://opil.ouplaw.com). (c) Oxford University Press, 2023. All Rights Reserved.date: 03 October 2023

Subject(s):
Judges — Elements of crimes — International criminal law, conduct of proceedings — Evidence

This chapter comments on Article 61 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Article 61 provides for the confirmation hearing, i.e. the mechanism enabling the Pre-Trial Chamber to determine whether the case should be sent to trial and, if so, on what charges. The confirmation hearing has been described as a ‘gatekeeper’ function. According to Judge Steiner, sitting as a Single Judge, ‘[t]he confirmation hearing has a limited scope and by no means can it be seen as an end in itself, but it must be seen as a means to distinguish those cases that should go to trial from those that should not go to trial’. The confirmation hearing is also described as a mechanism ‘designed to protect the rights of the Defence against wrongful and wholly unfounded charges’.

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