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Abstract
The modern system of international criminal justice, which was born out of World War II and built in its current form during the early 1990s, is both revolutionary and a relic. The ideals, innovation, and vision that created the international legal order were ground-breaking at the time but have failed to evolve at a pace that ensures its relevance and efficacy. The challenges we face today are drastically different from those in the period in which the framework was conceived, the institutions were formed, and the laws were drafted. While these changes have been incremental over several decades, technological advances have led to fundamental transformations in how individuals communicate, how societies interact, and how states engage with each other and their constituents. The law, in contrast, has been slower to evolve, owing in large part to the dearth of enforcement mechanisms. One can point to an abundance of academic literature and soft law instruments that provide scholarly guidance on the interpretation of international law applicable to new and emerging technologies. However, this debate is siloed from the practical realities of international law in which very few court cases have tested how international law applies to these technologies in practice. This Article assesses the effectiveness of the current system of international criminal justice in the face of emerging threats, assessing whether and how existing international law applies and identifying where it falls short.
Recommended Citation
Freeman, Lindsay
(2025)
"Revolutions in Justice: Advancing the Rome Statute System to Fight Impunity in Future Wars,"
Chicago Journal of International Law:
Vol. 26:
No.
1, Article 14.
Available at:
https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cjil/vol26/iss1/14