This LLM will introduce students to the substantive doctrine, values and policies of international criminal law by looking at different academic perspectives on international criminal law (ICL) and national, regional and international security as well as the nature, sources and rationale for ICL. Consideration will be given to the institutions of ICL: UN, ICJ, ICTY, ICTR and ICC as well as the history and development of the ICC (International Criminal Court). The 1998 Rome Statute, ICC Jurisdiction, internal organisation, and the first completed trials will be covered and students will be asked to critique the ICC using constitutional and political arguments for and against its creation and maintenance. Core offences under ICL such as genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, crime of aggression and torture will be examined alongside the defences to ICL charges. There will be a detailed case study of the legal prohibition of incitement to genocide and associated racism demonstrating the challenges to regional and international security.

Transnational police and security cooperation such as Interpol, Europol and Eurojust will be considered as well as the transnational legal dimensions to “national security” including within the context of the European and international human rights law and policy.

Students will develop an understanding of how international law functions in the maintenance of maritime security and peaceful uses of the oceans. The general legal framework, the UN Law of the Sea Convention and IMO Regulations will all be considered. Piracy and maritime terrorism and the freedom of the seas and navigational rights will be examined as well as the proliferation of security initiatives, maritime interdiction and maritime boundary disputes.

Terrorism has been a significant challenge to international peace and security for many years: especially since the advent of Islamist terror groups such as Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan in the late 1990s, culminating in the “9/11” atrocities of 2001. The train bombings in Madrid in 2004 and in London in 2005 and more recently the rise of Islamist terror groups in the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa serve only to remind us of the serious threat terrorism poses to international security.

This LLM examines incidents of international terrorism and the obligations states have to protect themselves from acts and threats of terrorism. Transnational legal responses to terrorism will also be considered together with an assessment of the rights of individuals suspected of terrorism in the pursuit of protecting human security.

The programme will provide students with expertise, analytical and reflective skills. The programme aims to provide a learning experience that will enable students to develop their academic ability, to further develop their careers and to assist them in making a positive contribution to the wider, global and national community.

Moot Court Room