The judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) adopted an amendment to regulations 52 and 53 of the Regulations of the Court, which enters into force today. The amendments concern the presentation of the document containing the charges and the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber to confirm or decline charges.
Regulations 52 and 53 of the Regulations of the Court, as amended, provide clear direction on how the charges need to be presented by the Office of the Prosecutor and in the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber. The confirmation of charges decision is a pivotal document for the conduct of the trial and defines its scope. By harmonising the presentation of key pre-trial and trial documents, the judges enhance the efficiency and transparency of the confirmation of charges procedure and ensuing trial proceedings.
The amendment reflects best practices as applied consistently by the Pre-Trial Chamber since 2019. The practice had previously been set forth in the "Chambers Practice Manual" and aligns with the objectives of recommendations 193 and 194 of the Report of the Independent Expert Review conducted in 2020. The amendment is part of the judges' efforts to continuously improve the procedures of the Court and codify best practices as appropriate. Prior to its approval by the plenary of judges, the amendment proposal was placed before the Court's Advisory Committee on Legal Texts, which consists of three judges (one from each Division), one representative from the Office of the Prosecutor, one representative from the Registry and one representative of counsel included in the Court's list of counsel.
The amendment to the Regulations of the Court will be circulated to States Parties for comments. Pursuant to article 52(3) of the Rome Statute, if within six months from circulation, there are no objections from a majority of States Parties, the amendments shall remain in force.
