International Criminal Court, Second Court’s Report on the Development of Performance Indicators for the International Criminal Court (Nov. 11, 2016). Available online, archived.

Fatou Bensouda, ICC Prosecutor, Remarks at Tenth Plenary Meeting, Discussions on the Efficiency and Effectiveness of Court Proceedings (Nov. 24, 2015). Available online, archived.

International Criminal Court, Report of the Court on the Development of Performance Indicators for the International Criminal Court (Nov. 12, 2015). Available online, archived.

International Justice Monitor, Establishing Performance Indicators for the International Criminal Court, Nov. 23, 2015. Available online, archived.

Open Society Justice Initiative, Briefing Paper: Establishing Performance Indicators for the International Criminal Court (Nov. 2015). Available online, archived.

Admits the benefit of having performance indicator but argues that the indicators must provide a comprehensive view on ICC’s performance rather than ending up providing a list of data; also argues that it be set-up by the ICC itself after hearing voices outside the court.

Dapo Akande, The Jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court over Nationals of Non-Parties: Legal Basis and Limits, 1 J. Int’l Crim. Just. 618 (Dec. 1, 2003). Oxford Academic paywall, ResearchGate paywall.

Discusses how the ICC needs State acceptance in order for the ICC to have jurisdiction over the State; it cannot impose or create duties among these states. He also gives a variety of examples on how this is applied and how the ICC deals with official acts of non-state parties and their immunities.

Payam Akhavan, The Rise, and Fall, and Rise, of International Criminal Justice, 11 J. Int’l Crim. Just. 527 (Jul. 2013). Oxford Academic paywall, EBSCO Host paywall.

Argues that the goals of international justice should be defined primarily as prevention with reconciliation as a secondary goal. Given the great expense and time involved in international criminal proceedings, as well as the loss of ownership among the national jurisdictions involved, the ICC’s success would better be measured by a realistic and reasonable complementarity scheme where national jurisdictions are empowered to punish international crimes. Such prosecutions are generally less expensive and reach further than the few cases which can be brought before the ICC.

Philipp Ambach & Klaus U. Rackwitz, A Model of International Judicial Administration? The Evolution of Managerial Practices at the International Criminal Court, 76 Law & Contemp. Probs. 119 (2013). Available online.

Evaluates the ICC’s ability to learn from initial mistakes in its financial management and “revamp” court operations to be more efficient and effective. Concludes that the ICC has “steadily improved structurally and performance wise over the years.” In addition, the author suggests a three-prong test for future proposals to reform the ICC’s administrative and institutional framework: (1) will the reform allow the ICC to perform its functions quicker? (2) will the reform allow the ICC to perform its functions with higher quality results? and (3) will the reform all the ICC to perform its function with fewer resources?

Lauren Marie Balasco, The International Criminal Court as a Human Security Agent, 28 PRAXIS 46 (2013). Available online, archived.

Lilian A. Barria & Steven D. Roper, How Effective are International Criminal Tribunals? An Analysis of the ICTY and the ICTR, 9 Int’l J. of Hum. Rts. 349 (Sep. 2005). Available online, archived.

Tom Buitelaar, The ICC and the Prevention of Atrocities: Criminological Perspectives, 17 Hum. Rts. Rev. 286 (2016). Springer paywall. Earlier version: The Hague Institute for Global Justice, Working Paper 8 (Apr. 2015), available online, archived.

Uses insights from criminology and psychology to enhance the understanding of the ICC’s deterrent capabilities. The main conclusion is that, although the ICC is helping somewhat, its prospects for the direct and meaningful deterrence of future atrocities is slim.

Edgardo Buscaglia & Maria Dakolias, Comparative International Study of Court Performance Indicators: a Descriptive and Analytical Account, Research Paper, Legal Department, The World Bank (Aug. 1999). Available online, archived.

Applies several statistical measures that assess the impact that different type of reforms have on court performance. Specifically, addresses the impact of investment in technology and infrastructure, raise in pay for court officials, hiring of employees, and operation management procedures. Concludes that the greatest gains in judicial efficiency result from heavy investment in IT infrastructure whereas heavy capital investment in salaries and staff sizes result in the worst court performance. Further concludes that long term efficiency gains require a broader program that encompasses multiple reform efforts that address the different investments previously mentioned as well as case-management techniques, leadership training, as well establishing quality control standards to monitor the performance of the court’s employees.

Linda E. Carter, The Future of the International Criminal Court: Complementarity as a Strength or a Weakness?, 12 Wash. U. Global Stud. L. Rev. 451 (2013). Available online.

Suggests a different measure of evaluating the ICC performance and success. instead of checking his internal performance, the external influence on the member state should be looked at. Looks at the “complementarity” principle and claims that it can be both a weakness and a strength for the ICC as an institution (and gives a lot of examples). Claims that in order for the court to be considered “successful” it must have credibility, legitimacy and impartiality in its judicial operation. This is why it is important in the case of the ICC to develop a measure for its role in complementarity—no cases in the ICC should mean that national jurisdictions are trying cases of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, and it should count as a success (“national capacity building”). Also, the judicial proceedings are well documented, and it is clear that they are a major focus of how the ICC is viewing its accomplishments.

Christine H. Chung, The Punishment and Prevention of Genocide: The International Criminal Court as a Benchmark of Progress and Need, 40 Case W. Res. J. Int’l L. 227 (2008). Available online.

Discusses progress in the mission of punishing and preventing genocide and other crimes of international concern and the difficulties and challenges in accomplishing the Genocide Convention’s objectives as relates to the ICC. Argues that the ICC has started to fulfill at least three core aims of the genocide convention.

Christine H. Chung, Victims’ Participation at the International Criminal Court: Are Concessions of the Court Clouding the Promise?, 6 Nw. J. Int’l Hum. Rts. (2008). Available online.

Considers whether the system of victim participation set up by the ICC allows for adequate victims participation in the judicial process. Concludes that the framework for victim participation is unworkable and falls short of allowing victims to participate meaningfully in court proceedings. Suggests ways in which victims and their representatives might more meaningfully participate in ICC proceedings, better capitalize on the existence of ICC investigations and cases to communicate their views and concerns, and create better accountability and vindication for victim rights.

Stephen Smith Cody, Eric Stover, Mychelle Balthazard & K. Alexa Koenig, The Victims’ Court? A Study of 622 Victim Participants at the International Criminal Court, UC Berkeley HRC (2015). Available online, archived.

The authors first conducted an interview survey of ICC victim participants in order to address questions such as (1) What were the victims’ perceptions of the court and how it operated? (2) How were the victims’ interactions with the court staff? and (3) Did the victims have security or safety concerns? After conducting 622 interviews with victim participants, the authors produced this report, which contains a summary of findings and several recommendations for the ICC and state parties. Ultimately, the authors argue that the ICC must either “invest more resources and think more creatively about how it can meet the pragmatic and psychosocial needs of victim participants in its present form or revamp the program entirely.”

Jacob Katz Cogan, International Criminal Courts and Fair Trials: Difficulties and Prospects, 27 Yale J. Int’l L. 111 (2002). Available online.

Argues that when considering fairness of ICC, the right to prepare a defense, equality of arms, and judicial independence should be considered. Also argues that fairness at ICC is influenced by whether related parties cooperate (especially with the accused regarding access to information or evidence they need for the defense) and whether the court is influenced by third parties through financial or other supports. The concept of fairness is necessarily conditioned on both.

Jacob Katz Cogan, The Problem of Obtaining Evidence for International Criminal Courts, 22 Hum. Rts. Q. 404 (May 2000). JSTOR paywall, ResearchGate paywall.

Lays out a foundation that international criminal courts largely depend on states to provide evidence. Examines the Rome Statute and argues that the statute fails to provide a fair procedure to obligate states to produce evidence in support of court proceedings.

Maria Dakolias, Court Performance Around the World: a Comparative Perspective, 1 Yale Hum. Rts. & Dev. L.J. 87 (1999). Available online.

Geoff Dancy & Florencia Montal, Unintended Positive Complementarity: Why International Criminal Court Investigations Increase Domestic Human Rights Prosecutions, Am. J. Int’l L. (forthcoming 2017). SSRN paywall. Earlier version (Jan. 20, 2015), available online, archived.

Uses statistical analysis to show that ICC investigation into a situation country by itself increases the rates of domestic prosecutions for human rights abuses. This is not the positive complementarity of developing local judicial infrastructure for national prosecutions, rather the mere act of opening an investigation galvanizes reformers within the situation country and enables them to demand reforms from the government and to build cases against human rights abusers. By opening an investigation in a country, the ICC can essentially increase the number of war criminals that are brought to trial.

Allison Marston Danner, Enhancing the Legitimacy and Accountability of Prosecutorial Discretion at the International Criminal Court, 97 Am. J. Int’l L. 510 (2003). Available online, archived.

Provides a framework for evaluating the dynamics of accountability at the ICC and assessing the legitimacy of the Prosecutor’s discretionary decision making. With the Court’s legitimacy being questioned by powerful states, the author evaluates how the ICC system will work in practice, and whether its architecture is suitable for other international dispute resolution systems. Outlines that the ICC’s prosecutor provides the main reference point for this debate; and, with that, proposes prosecutorial guidelines which will help the prosecutor negotiate the tension between accountability and independence. These guidelines will assist Prosecutors in establishing the legitimacy of their discretionary decision-making by providing for a transparent standard that is consistently applied. This will improve the process employed by Prosecutors and their staff; which, in turn, enhances the legitimacy of their discretion.

Stuart Ford, Complexity and Efficiency at International Criminal Courts, 29 Emory Int’l L. Rev. 1 (2014). Available online, archived.

Steven Freeland, The ‘Effectiveness’ of International Criminal Justice, 16 ALTA Law Research Series 16 (2008). Available online, archived.

Sam Boris Garkawe, Victims and the International Criminal Court: Three Major Issues, 3 Int’l Crim. L. Rev. 345 (2003). HeinOnline paywall, Brill paywall.

Lays out subjects related to the victims of atrocities. Explains how the victims have a right to legal representation, how they have rights to compensation, and how the ICC is involved in giving them those rights and also getting them necessary and just compensation. Discusses the importance of giving the victims a role in these situations and the important role the ICC plays to achieve the correct application of justice for the victims.

Jack Goldsmith, The Self-Defeating International Criminal Court, 70 U. Chi. L. Rev. 89 (2003). Available online.

One of the main issues with the ICC is that crimes are dependent on jurisdiction. Moreover, some states are likely to refrain from going on peacekeeping missions, unless they receive immunity from the Court, which may weaken human rights protections.

Dan H. Hall & Ingo Keilitz, Global Measures of Court Performance, International Framework for Court Excellence, Discussion Draft Version 3 (Nov. 9, 2012). Available online.

Provides a guideline for how to assess the performance of a court by outlining eleven core indicators to measure its performance. These are: court user satisfaction, access fees, case clearance rate, on-time case processing, pre-trial custody, court file integrity, case backlog, trial date certainty, employee engagement, compliance with court orders, and cost per case. The article goes on to define these performance indicators and explain how they should be used.

Courtney Hillebrecht, The Deterrent Effects of the International Criminal Court: Evidence from Libya, 42:4 Int’l Interactions (forthcoming May 5, 2016). Available online, archived.

Outlines the causal mechanisms by which the ICC could affect ongoing violence and tests these assumptions using event count models of the relationship between the ICC and the level of violence against civilians in Libya during the 2011 crisis. These analyses suggest that the ICC’s involvement in conflict does have a dampening effect on the level of mass atrocities committed.

Philipp Kastner, Domestic War Crimes Trials: Only for “Others”? Bridging National and International Criminal Law, 39 UWA L. Rev. 29 (2015). Available online, archived.

Argues that national trials should play a more important role in international criminal law, but that this is prevented by some barriers at the national level. War crimes implementation statutes vary greatly from country to country, some even prosecute war crimes under their normal criminal or military justice codes rather than as war crimes. In that case, while the underlying acts are still punished, they are not given the same serious impact that a war crimes prosecution would give. The author also argues that the disparity in domestic war crimes, genocide, and torture prosecutions between countries gives the sense that these crimes are only committed in certain parts of the world and encourages claims of bias. Ultimately, the author concludes that national prosecutions should be the primary international criminal law implementation mechanism and that to prosecute the acts as international rather than domestic crimes serves the ends of international criminal law.

Birju Kotecha, The ICC: What Counts as a Success? Just. in Conflict (Sep. 13, 2013), available online, archived.

Alex Little, Secrecy at the International Criminal Court, 103 Proc. of the 103rd Ann. Meeting (ASIL) 232 (2009). JSTOR paywall.

Argues that the International Criminal Court is bound by a significant amount of confidential information. The court can strike an appropriate balance with respect to transparency by evaluating: “(1) the primary importance of deferential secrecy to the Court’s institutional viability, (2) the increased difficulty of its investigations and the overwhelming vulnerability of victims in light of the gravity and scope of its cases, and (3) the Court’s peculiar need for public confidence.”

Melissa K. Marler, The International Criminal Court: Assessing the Jurisdictional Loopholes in the Rome Statute, 49 Duke L.J. 825 (1999). Available online.

Jamie Mayerfeld, Who Shall Be Judge?: The United States, The International Criminal Court, and the Global Enforcement of Human Rights, 25 Hum. Rts. Q. 93 (2007). JSTOR paywall.

The importance of U.S. support to the ICC is discussed. The article also focuses on arguments made against the ICC and how all of these controversies are curable.

Sally Engle Merry, Measuring the World: Indicators, Human Rights, and Global Governance, 52 Current Anthropology 83 (Apr. 2011). Available online.

Guénaël Mettraux, Shireen Avis Fisher, Dermot Groome, Alex Whiting, Gabrielle McIntyre, Jérôme De Hemptinne & Göran Sluiter, Expert Initiative on Promoting Effectiveness at the International Criminal Court (Dec. 2014). Available online, archived.

The purpose of this report is to identify the main efficacy problems facing the ICC and provide realistic solutions. The authors’ goals are to improve upon the quality, expeditiousness, and cost of ICC proceedings. The authors focus on numerous facets of the ICC, including (1) victim participation before the ICC, (2) presentation and admission of evidence, and (3) cooperation and witness protection. In each section, the authors provide a brief discussion or set of observations about a particular facet of the court, and then proceed to make recommendations for improvement.

Erwin Müller & Patricia Schneider, The ICJ 1945–2001: Empirical Findings about its Performance and Recommendations for an Improvement of its Efficiency, 3 Rev. of Int’l Law and Pol. 71 (Sep. 2007). EBSCO Host paywall.

The authors propose several changes that they believe will result in a more effective international criminal court. First, the authors suggest that the capacity to be a party in the suit should be expanded to include minorities, national authorities, and international organizations. The authors also suggest that the court should have a compulsory jurisdiction that creates a legal obligation to appear before the court and also allows the court to give judgment on the merits regardless of whether the parties appear before the court. The authors also suggest that the ICC should be able to force the UN Security Council to enforce its rulings through economic means or by the use of force while also removing the veto power of the permanent members for this instance. The authors believe that the changes would make sure that all groups and institutions have access to legal redress and create a court which can enforce its judgments.

Diane F. Orentlicher, Judging Global Justice: Assessing the International Criminal Court, 21 Wis. Int’l L.J. 495 (2003). Lexis/Nexis paywall.

Considers various performance indicators through which to assess the ICC. The author first considers the example provided by other international criminal tribunals such as the ICTY and considers whether the criticisms leveled against those tribunals may be similarly applicable to the ICC. The major criticisms are that international criminal tribunals do not have much of a deterrent effect; and that, even when they have an effect, it is short-term. The author then considers various performance indicators through which to assess the ICC including: fair process, the arrest issue, efficiency, prosecutorial discretion, and complementarity. Concludes by arguing that the most effective way to prevent unchecked prosecutorial discretion (one of her main concerns) is through ongoing and vigilant monitoring of the court’s performance.

Jelena Pejic, Creating a Permanent International Criminal Court: The Obstacles to Independence and Effectiveness, 29 Colum. Hum. Rts. L. Rev. 291 (1998). Lexis/Nexis paywall.

This paper was written before the creation of the ICC. It explores the concerns states had before the creation of the court. It gives interesting insights into how states thought of the courts and how the author defines an effective international court: a court that is not stymied by political considerations, but rather a court that must effectively prosecute and punish perpetrations of international crimes once its jurisdiction is established.

Moses Retselisitsoe Phooko, How Effective the International Criminal Court Has Been: Evaluating the Work and Progress of the International Criminal Court, 1 Notre Dame J. of Int’l & Comp. L. 182 (May 1, 2011). Available online.

Starts by explaining other regions in which the ICC needs to also focus on, then explains the importance of the ICC´s involvement in other areas than Africa. He also points out the purpose of the court and the crimes that it has jurisdiction over, and the limits the Rome Statute and the Security Council puts on the ICC.

Eric A. Posner, The Decline of the International Court of Justice, John M. Olin Program in Law and Economics, Working paper No. 233, 2004. Available online.

Reviews the decline of the ICJ by examining its performance through two separate theories. The first examines the impartiality of judges and the second implies that the court itself has been the victim of conflicting interests among the states that use and control it. Posner analyses the two and suggests that the judges should have applied international law impartially, while the second suggests that the judges should have applied international law with greater sensitivity to political realities. Concludes that these two theories were major factors that contributed to the decline of the ICJ.

Jaya Ramji-Nogales, Designing Bespoke Transitional Justice: A Pluralist Process Approach, 32 Mich. J. Int’l L. 1, 15 (2010). Available online.

Sophie Rigney, ‘The Words Don’t Fit You’: Recharacterisation of the Charges, Trial Fairness, and Katanga, 15 Melb. J. Int’l L. 515 (Dec. 21, 2014). Available online.

Focuses on the implications of recharacterizing the charges of a defendant, and how this reflects the process of fairness of international criminal trials. Fairness should be especially positioned towards the accused. Recharacterizing increases the interest of the prosecutor. Especially in the case of Katanga, where acquittal may have been likely, fairness did not exist. Author states the criminal procedure system of international courts have an uncertain balance between the accused and other parties.

Susana SáCouto & Katherine Cleary, Importance of Effective Investigation of Sexual Violence and Gender-Based Crimes at the International Criminal Court, 17 Am. U. J. Gender & Soc. Pol’y & L. 337, 373 (2009). Available online, archived.

Examine two related issues regarding the investigation and prosecution of gender-based crimes. First, explores how the court’s jurisprudence allows for gender-based crimes to be heard by the court. Second, explains the ongoing challenges the court faces in successfully prosecuting these cases. Concludes by saying that a fundamental purpose of the court is to prosecute gender-based crimes, and failing to do so would mean the court would be ineffective in combating a crime internationally recognized as reprehensible.

Jeremy Sarkin, Enhancing the Legitimacy, Status, and Role of the International Criminal Court Globally by Using Transitional Justice and Restorative Justice Strategies, 6 IJHRL 83 (Aug. 3, 2012). Available online.

Argues that the legitimacy of the ICC would be enhanced if it were to incorporate restorative justice and transitional justice goals. Although retributive justice is necessary, and the Court is doing just that through its prosecutions, the author believes the ICC should also focus on restorative and transitional approaches. He suggests actions such as supporting and encouraging state judicial systems to prosecute domestically. The Court can use its resources to promote awareness, train local lawyers, and put pressure on countries to prosecute their crimes domestically. This proactive complementarity will not only be more cost-effective for the Court, but will likely have a more lasting impact on the victims and the country as a whole.

Yuval Shany, Assessing the Effectiveness of International Courts: A Goal-Based Approach, 106 Am. J. Int’l L. 225 (2012). Available online, archived.

Evaluates the performance of the international courts through their effectiveness. Discusses different methods to evaluate international court effectiveness and rejects them all, claiming the right method should be one that moves beyond the notions of compliance inducement. The right method comes from social science literature and not from international law theories—a “Goal-Based Approach”. According to this approach, an action is effective if it accomplishes its specific objective aim. In order to measure the effectiveness of an international court using this approach, one has to identify the court’s aims/goals and ascertain a reasonable time frame for meeting some or all of these goals. Discusses some of the difficulties involved in measuring effectiveness on the basis of goal attainment, especially ones related to strict definitions and use of a define time-frame. Overcomes problems related to the fact that each international court has its own distinctive features and legal and political context.

Yuval Shany, Assessing the Effectiveness of International Courts: Can the Unquantifiable Be Quantified? Hebrew U. Int’l L. Res. Paper 03-10 (Sep. 2, 2010). Available online.

Katherine Ann Snitzer, Peace Through Justice?: Evaluating the International Criminal Court, Honors Thesis, Macalester College (Apr. 2012). Available online.

Michael L. Smidt, The International Criminal Court: An Effective Means Of Deterrence?, 167 Mil. L. Rev. 156 (2001). Available online, archived.

Argues that the ICC, as it is formed now, has the potential to deter the wrong parties (namely the U.S. government) due to potential political prosecutions. Therefore, if the U.S. is unable to intervene in international issues, then bad actors may not be effectively deterred from committing atrocities because they will not face military counter-actions.

James J. Spigelman, Chief Justice, New South Wales, Address to the Australian Institute of Judicial Administration, Measuring Court Performance (Sep. 16, 2006). Available online.

Centrally concerned with the impossibility and undesirability of attempts to measure the “quality” of court processes and judicial determinations. There is no measurable performance indicator for the quality of judicial decision-making. Attempts to measure the “client satisfaction” of litigants are, at best, worthless and, at worst, corrosive of judicial independence and the rule of law. This is one example of a battle for institutional power between managers and professionals like doctors, teachers, and judges. This address sets out examples of the pathology of measurement, where gaming the system creates perverse results.

Carsten Stahn, Between ‘Faith’ and ‘Facts’: By What Standards Should We Assess International Criminal Justice?, 25 Leiden J. Int’l L. 251 (2012), earlier version (Oct. 31, 2011). Available online, archived.

Argues that in evaluating international criminal courts, it is important to temper concepts of facts with faith, i.e. realism with idealism. Recognizing the courts’ idealistic beginnings, it's important to seek facts. Understanding the way international courts function and quantifying its effects are important. On the other hand, international courts should recognize their limitations regarding obtaining quantifiable facts and also accept a role as an expressivist institution that sets an example, and transforms norms in states. Concludes by arguing international courts should focus a great deal on building the capacity of state actors, for it is at the domestic level where the most meaningful change seems to occur.

Johan D. van der Vyver, Time is of the Essence: The In-Depth Analysis Chart in Proceedings Before the International Criminal Court, 48 Crim. L. Bull. 601 (2012). Westlaw paywall.

Introduces the practice named “the in-depth analysis chart” which requires the prosecution to make a chart that ties every single page (or even paragraph) to related elements of a crime. This chart enables the court to make the process more efficient and enables the accused to grasp the prosecution’s case and make better preparation for the trial. Though the ICC acknowledges the benefit of the chart, it imposes a huge burden on the prosecution to prepare it and this leads the court to switch the involvement of ICC from having a trial to influencing States’ prosecutions through positive complementarity.

Patrick Vinck & Phuong N. Pham, Outreach Evaluation: The International Criminal Court in the Central African Republic, IJTJ (Nov. 13, 2010). Oxford Journals paywall, EBSCO Host paywall.

The study discussed in this article was designed to evaluate International Criminal Court outreach programs in the Central African Republic. Specifically, the article examines how the public gathers information about the ICC and what factors influence knowledge levels and perceptions in relation to the Court. The findings show that mass media and informational meetings are effective at raising awareness and knowledge, but that the lack of access to formal media and reliance on informal channels of communication create a group of ‘information poor’ individuals. Suggests that outreach must be local in order to respond to individuals’ needs and expectations and to ensure their access to information. Evaluation research must be implemented systematically and on a continuing basis to assess how best to reach various target groups and develop innovative, responsive, and flexible communication strategies.

Patrick Vinck, Phuong N. Pham, Suliman Baldo, & Rachel Shigekane, Human Rights Center, Living with Fear: A Population-based Survey on Attitudes about Peace, Justice, and Social Reconstruction in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, 15–18 (Aug. 2008). Available online.

Makokha Ronald Walala, A Critical Assessment of the Performance of the International Criminal Court (2002–2008), Moi University (Apr. 22, 2009). Available online.

Estimates the challenges the ICC face and the effects on its performance and offers a solution—a mechanism—under the new Model of the court. Claims that the challenges the ICC face arise from its “rigid mechanism” of a centralized model. Describes the court performance as ‘poor’ and lists three main factors: realpolitik, the complementarity principle, and cooperation. Offers a model of a “Hybrid/Mixed Court”—a more flexible and localized one such as the SCSL: “The Court’s jurisdiction and that of national courts is to operate concurrently. However, the Special Court retains primacy over national courts and may at any time obtain their deference if it so wishes.”

Jo-Anne Wemmers, Victims and the International Criminal Court: Evaluating the Success of the ICC with Respect to Victims, 16 IRV 211 (2009). SAGE paywall, ResearchGate paywall.

One of the functions of the ICC is to bring justice to the victims of mass atrocities. Wemmers argues that a vital measurement of the Court’s success is in how victims perceive the ICC. If victims see the Court as credible and legitimate, this contributes to the overall success of the ICC. Wemmers conducts a study on victims’ perceptions about the procedures and outcomes of the Court, ultimately concluding that victims are more concerned about the outcomes of the trials. But, because the ICC can do little to ensure a large number of victims participate or receive reparations, Wemmers argues the Court should focus on garnering the victims’ positive perception regarding the procedures and fairness of the trials.