Romina Edith Pezzot

In this paper I analyze the apparent taboo that would exist regarding custom as a source of international criminal law, as a consequence of the tension that exists between custom and the principle of legality. The taboo it could be due to the non-written character of customary international criminal rules and the challenges to probe them as positive law. Thus, based on the ´Draft conclusions on identification of customary international law´ prepared by the UN International Law Commission, in this paper I propose a method to determine the existence of a customary international criminal rule, that could be implemented by national and international criminal jurisdictions. This method would ensure the observance of the principle of legality and contribute to strengthen the legitimacy of international criminal law.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is "per se" an international criminal jurisdiction established through an agreement with the aim to resolve those social conflicts that arise as a consequence of certain unlawful behaviors of individuals: war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and aggression, considered as the most serious crimes by the international community as a whole. Thus, the ICC is an instance or mechanism for the recomposition of the respect of fundamental values, such as the international peace and security and the dignity of the human being. However, as a result of its functioning is that certain controversies can emerge either on the occasion of the exercise of its judicial functions, or between two or more States Parties regarding the interpretation and application of the Statute.
The description of the nature of the controversies that may arise as well as the means to settle them (established in the Statute), are the object of study in this work.
This paper is part of the book "La Solución de Controversias en Derecho Internacional y Temas Vinculados. Liber Amicorum Alejandro Turyn"

This is my contribution to the book edited by Professor Silvina González Napolitano "Lecciones de Derecho Internacional Público" (Errepar, 2015). In this chapter (number 47 of the book), I describe the origin and evolution of International Criminal Law, as well as its main features and material scope of application.

This chapter is part of the book edited by Professor Emiliano Buis "¿Justificar la Guerra? Discursos y Prácticas en torno a la legitimación del uso de la fuerza y su licitud en el derecho internacional" (Eudeba, 2014).
It is said that the "just war theory" lost its validity after the adoption of the UN Charter. However, in my chapter I argue that the concept is still implicitly being present in the actions of the UN Security Council, in particular when adopting resolutions to maintain international peace and security.