UNA Warwick & District : “Prosecuting Individuals for Crimes under International Law”

“Prosecuting Individuals for Crimes under International Law”
How you define Genocide, War crimes and Crimes Against Humanity?

Guest Speaker:    Dr Lawrence Hill-Cawthorne
Associate Professor in Public International Law
School of Law, University of Reading

Lawrence will introduce the history of the process of holding individuals criminally responsible at the international level.  He will then outline how the present state of international criminal justice evolved and what difficulties and limitations exists in this area.  He will also discuss the successes, if any, and failures off the International Criminal Court as well as establishment of Ad Hoc International Criminal Tribunals for former Yugoslavia. The ICC is there to prosecute and bring to justice those responsible for the worst crimes - genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. The court has global jurisdiction.  Why does it take so long to bring those who have committed such crimes to the Court and does the ICC lack the political will?  How do you define crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes etc?

Prior to joining Reading in September 2013, Lawrence was a Graduate Teaching Assistant in Public International Law at the University of Oxford, where he was also completing his doctorate. He was also previously a Stipendiary Lecturer and Director of Studies in Law at Merton College, Oxford.  
Other previous positions include Visiting Fellow in the Law Department at the London School of Economics (2016), British Research Council Fellow at the John W Kluge Center, Library of Congress, Washington DC.  Convenor of the Oxford Public International Law Discussion Group, and Treasurer & Member of the Executive Committee of Oxford Pro Bono Publico.

Lawrence's research interests cut across a number of topics within public international law, and his recent work has focused on international humanitarian law, international human rights law and international criminal law. He is especially interested in the relationship of these different areas to general international law. His monograph, Detention in Non-International Armed Conflict, which was published in 2016 by Oxford University Press, was awarded the American Society of International Law's 2016 Francis Lieber Prize for best book in the field of international law and armed conflict, as well the University of Reading's 2017 Faculty Research Output Prize. It was also shortlisted for the 2016 Society of Legal Scholars' Peter Birks' Book Prize. His scholarship has been cited by, amongst others, the UK Court of Appeal and UK Supreme Court. Lawrence has also acted as advisor to international organisations, as well as legal practitioners in his areas of expertise.

There will be a Ploughman`s Lunch and coffee/tea (£3.50 per head) from 12:00 pm till 12:30 pm and the meeting starts at 12:30 prompt.  For catering purpose please do let me know if you intend coming.