Introduction: The International Criminal Tribunals and the Judicial Development of International Criminal Law

This introductory chapter sets the foundations for the ensuing discussion of the role of judicial creativity in the development of core aspects of international criminal law as evidenced in the jurisprudence of the ad hoc International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. It is clear that at the time of the creation of the Tribunals in the early 1990s international criminal law was substantively and procedurally rudimentary. However, some fifteen years later and as they move towards the completion of their mandates, it is an appropriate time to examine their jurisprudential legacy. This undoubtedly substantial legacy is owed in no small measure to the creative enterprises of their respective benches. The chapter outlines the various broad areas in which judicial creativity is especially evident and provides an overview of the subsequent chapters in the collection.