Participants of the Training for Counsel held on 10-13 June 2019 at the seat of the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands © ICC-CPI
The International Criminal Court (ICC) held a four-day Training for Counsel at the seat of the Court in The Hague, the Netherlands on June 10 to 13, with the participation of more than 120 lawyers registered on the ICC List of Counsel.
In his opening address, the ICC Registrar, Peter Lewis, said that “This event is part of the mandate of the Registry and is all about continuous improvement. We think after more than a decade of our operations, it is a good time to pause and reflect on how we have done and how we could improve. And I hope that, through your organisations and the bar associations that you represent, you will play a full part in that process.”
The session allowed ICC representatives, members of the ICC List of Counsel and members of the legal teams currently intervening before the Court to share experiences and discuss issues of mutual interest. Over the four days, the participants focussed on understanding the management of the Court’s judicial proceedings, including the use of the e-Court system, translation and interpretation services, information security, safety and security in the field and coordination and planning of missions of counsel and team members. A significant part of this training session was dedicated to the issue of harassment prevention. The participants also received the updates on legal issues in the ongoing cases.
This training was organised in collaboration with the International Criminal Court Bar Association (ICCBA) and with the financial support of the European Commission. ICC Seminars and Trainings for counsel on the ICC List of Counsel have been an annual activity of the Court since 2004, providing a unique platform to not only celebrate the contribution of Counsel to the Court’s mandate, but to also engage in mutually beneficial dialogue with the legal profession.