Sentencing in International Criminal Law: The UN ad hoc Tribunals and Future Perspectives for the ICC

(Hardback)

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This book deals with sentencing in international criminal law, focusing on the approach of the UN ad hoc Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and Rwanda (ICTR). In contrast to sentencing in domestic jurisdictions, and in spite of its growing importance, sentencing law is a part of international criminal law that is still 'under construction' and is unregulated in many aspects. International sentencing law and practice is not yet defined by exact norms and principles and as yet there is no body of international principles concerning the determination of sentence, notwithstanding the huge volume of sentencing research and the extensive modern debate about sentencing principles. Moreover international judges receive very little guidance in sentencing matters: this contributes to inconsistencies and may increase the risk that similar cases will be sentenced in different ways. One purpose of this book is to investigate and evaluate the process of international sentencing, especially as interpreted by the ICTY and the ICTR, and to suggest a more comprehensive and coherent system of guiding principles, which will foster the development of a law of sentencing for international criminal justice. The book discusses the law and jurisprudence of the ad hoc Tribunals, and also presents an empirical analysis of influential factors and other data from ICTY and ICTR sentencing practice, thus offering quantitative support for the doctrinal analysis. This publication is one of the first to be entirely devoted to the process of sentencing in international criminal justice. The book will thus be of great interest to practitioners, academics and students of the subject.

Reviews

...one of the few publications that is entirely devoted to the topic of sentencing in international criminal justice. The author's quantitative analysis of sentencing data provides for some interesting conclusions [and] the book's inclusion of both doctrinal and empirical research provides a balanced account of sentencing in international criminal law. It will be of assistance to practitioners, academics and students of the discipline. -- Melissa Hacking * The Cambridge Law Journal, 71(3) *
J. Frank Dobie, the renowned Texan author, once wrote that the 'average PhD thesis is nothing but a transference of bones from one graveyard to another'. Dobie apparently viewed the majority of student theses as academic requirements, destined to collect dust in a campus repository...Thankfully, the theses drafted by Sarah Williams and Silvia D'Ascoli were not destined for such a fate, finding a saviour in Hart Publishing, which incorporated the texts into its Studies in International and Comparative Criminal Law Series. ...both books contribute greatly to areas of international criminal law in need of further treatment [and] each should be proud to have contributed in a meaningful way to this emerging body of jurisprudence. Joint review of 'Hybrid and Internationalised Criminal Tribunals' by Sarah Williams and 'Sentencing in International Criminal Law' by Silvia D'Ascoli -- Matthew Kane * International Affairs, 88:5, 2012 *
In this book, Silvia D'Ascoli provides a detailed and comprehensive account of the legal foundations and principles for sentencing in international criminal law. However, the work extends far beyond this, because it also contains some invaluable empirical research on international sentencing, and sets out some novel proposals for a more principled and consistent approach to solving the problems faced in sentencing those individuals who have committed some of the most heinous of crimes. There is no doubt that it is an important contribution to the literature on international sentencing, particularly in its treatment of normative foundations and principles ...a significant and scholarly piece of work which does much to advance our knowledge in this area. This reviewer has no hesitation whatsoever in recommending Silvia D'Ascoli's book as compulsory reading for anyone with a serious interest in international sentencing. -- Ralph Henham * The Howard Journal of Criminal Justice, Volume 51, Number 2, May 2012 *

Author Bio

Silvia D'Ascoli is an Associate Legal Officer in the Appeals Division of the Office of the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).