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Stewart, Manley, Moslemzadeh Tehrani, Pardis and Rasiah, Rajah (2023) Mapping Interpretation by the International Criminal Court. Leiden Journal of International Law. Leiden Journal of International Law, 36 (3). pp. 771-806. ISSN 1478-9698

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Abstract

Abstract

This article is one of very few attempts to empirically measure legal interpretation. It maps the application of eleven interpretation elements (good faith, ordinary meaning, object and purpose, etc.) in Articles 31and 32 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT) across ten International Criminal Court case studies. The elements were coded for identity and sequence of element, and amount of text used in applying each element. The mapping and analysis reveal, among other things, that the application of the VCLT across cases is markedly inconsistent and, in some instances, opaque and arguably unjustifiable. The results suggest, at least based on this small sample, that the ICC’s current practice of applying the accommodating, flexible methodology of the VCLT may be inconsistent with the requirement of strict construction in Article 22 of the Rome Statute, and that even when strict construction does not technically apply, a more systematic, transparent, and robust approach should nevertheless still be followed.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: : judicial interpretation; empirical legal studies; International Criminal Court; Rome Statute; Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties;
Depositing User: Pardis M Tehrani
URI: https://sure.sunderland.ac.uk/id/eprint/16115

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Uncontrolled Keywords
: judicial interpretation; empirical legal studies; International Criminal Court; Rome Statute; Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties;
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Item ID
16115
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ISSN
1478-9698

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ORCID for Pardis Moslemzadeh Tehrani

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Date Deposited
15 May 2023 16:59
Last Modified
23 May 2025 12:50

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Author
Manley Stewart
Author
Rajah Rasiah

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