GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF CRIMINAL LAW

It is becoming more important to coordinate respect for these principles as international crimes increasingly incorporate extraterritorial aspects, necessitating increased engagement list of criminal lawyers in bangalore between States. The states must uphold them while also adhering to their own national criminal law principles and any special principles outlined in regional bodies’ agreements to which they are a concerned subject.

Part III of ICC statute
The broad principles of international criminal law are spelt out in Part 3 of the ICC Statute, titled “General Principles of Criminal Law” from Article 22 to Article 33. Part 3 is a significant accomplishment since it reflects an attempt to combine multiple criminal justice systems into a single legislative instrument. For the first time, it aims to formalise ideas like criminal participation modes, the mental element required for crimes, and accessible defences.

Part III of the ICC has the following potential benefits
The ability of judges to formulate criminal law principles will be constrained.
It provides the Court with a legislative structure.
It ensures that predictability has an impact on the rights of the accused.
It encourages the use of uniform jurisprudence and practice.

Fundamental principles of ICL
The principles of legality and double jeopardy are the two most fundamental or essential elements of international criminal law. The applicability of these concepts in international criminal prosecutions before international and domestic tribunals is always changing.

Principles of legality – nullum crimen, nulla poena sine lege
The principle prohibiting the retroactive enforcement of crimes and sanctions is a basic component of human rights law that applies directly to the international criminal law system. To be held criminally responsible, the behaviour must be illegal and punishable at the time of the offence being committed.

This is referred to as the principle of legality or nullum crimen sine lege and nulla poena sine lege. Given the often imprecise nature of international criminal law sources, the principle of legality is a crucial fundamental principle in international criminal law particularly in the case of customary international law.

Customary International Law
To avoid violating the principle of legality, it is essential when applying custom in criminal jurisdictions to ascertain precisely what the content of the law was at the time of the offence. It is also worth knowing whether it is reasonable to assume that the accused was aware of the criminal nature of his actions at the time when the crime was carried out.

Several reasons have aided in bringing to light the customary nature of statutory limitations’ non-applicability to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

A growing number of states have stated in their penal statutes that statutory limitations do not apply to these offences;
Article 29 of the ICC Statute codifies this concept, which its drafters saw as critical in avoiding impunity for serious crimes.

The idea of legality is codified in Article 15 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1996 (ICCPR), which states that no one may be convicted or punished for an act or omission that did not, at the time, constitute a criminal offence under the national or international law. It further states that no penalty may be imposed that is greater than that which was in effect at the time the criminal offence was committed.

The goal of this principle is to make sure that the legislation is clear and predictable so that people can anticipate the legal implications of their activities. Article 22 of the ICC statute provides a similar clause on the concept of legality. According to this principle, even though the conduct is not unlawful under national law, it does not exclude a person from being prosecuted for it under international law.