The International Criminal Court and the Australian Constitution

Abstract

The International Criminal Court (ICC) came into existence on 1 July 2002, when the 1998 Statute of the International Criminal Court (the Rome Statute) entered into force. Australia ratified the statute that same day, after an extensive 18 month review by Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Treaties (JSCOT) of the Rome Statute and draft legislation to implement the treaty. As part of its work JSCOT considered a number of constitutional objections to legislation implementing Australia’s Rome Statute obligations. This Comment briefly assesses the main concerns and argues that JSCOT was correct in concluding that none stood in the way of the legislation.