International Criminal Court

Overview

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an independent judicial body established by treaty during the middle period of Landfall-530 - Noble Blood to prosecute individuals responsible for severe violations of international law. It operates from the neutral city-state of Cadence and is not subject to the authority of any member nation. Its founding signatories were The Second Lilaris Empire, New Ides, and Mirage Concord.

The Court was designed as a complementary jurisdiction. It does not replace national courts, and only takes a case when national authorities are unable or unwilling to prosecute it themselves. Cases are initiated by referral from a member state, tried publicly, and decided by per-case panels of five justices.

Member States

The ICC's founding members are:

Each member ratifies a separate Membership Agreement on accession, formally submitting to the Court's jurisdiction and pledging cooperation with its investigations, extraditions, and sentencing.

Headquarters

The ICC is headquartered in Cadence, a small city-state constructed for the Court's use and ceded permanently to ICC jurisdiction by The Second Lilaris Empire. Cadence is governed solely by the ICC Charter, sits outside the sovereignty of any member nation, and houses the Court's chambers, archives, and administrative apparatus. It is the only neutral ground recognized by the founding signatories.

Structure

The Court does not maintain a standing bench. Instead, a Judicial Panel of five justices is convened for each individual case.

Justices are nominated by member states from among qualified legal experts and confirmed by majority vote of all member states.
The Court prefers that no more than one justice from any single member nation sit on a given case, and under no circumstances may more than two justices from the same nation serve on the same panel. This is intended to keep panels from being dominated by any single national perspective.
Appeals are heard by a newly formed panel, never by the original justices.

Jurisdiction

The ICC may try individuals accused of crimes committed:

On the territory of a member state.
By citizens of a member state.
Anywhere, when referred to the Court by special international mandate or by unanimous vote of all member states.

The Court's authority is complementary, meaning it intervenes only when national courts have failed, refused, or been unable to prosecute the case effectively.

War Crimes

The Court's most consequential body of work is the prosecution of war crimes. The categories of conduct subject to ICC jurisdiction are enumerated in a separate document, War Crimes Under the Jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which the Court treats as a binding companion to the Charter. The document applies to armed conflict of any kind, whether international or internal, and whether the conflict was formally declared as a war.

The enumerated categories are:

Attacks on Civilians and Non-Combatants. Intentional targeting of civilians, indiscriminate attacks, use of human shields, attacks on humanitarian aid and medical facilities, forced displacement, and terror tactics against civilian populations.
Treatment of Prisoners of War and Detainees. Execution without trial, enforced disappearances, mutilation and non-consensual medical experimentation, and the use of POWs for military labor.
Unlawful Weapons and Methods of Warfare. The use of banned weapons (including radiological weapons and incendiary or cluster munitions used against civilians), deliberate destruction of civilian infrastructure (water, power, food production), starvation as a method of war, unlawful sieges and blockades, environmental warfare, the booby-trapping of corpses or humanitarian supplies, and attacks on neutral peacekeeping forces.
Crimes Against Cultural and Religious Heritage. Destruction of cultural, historical, or religious sites without military necessity, pillage and plunder of occupied territories, and desecration of places of worship.
Prohibited Combat Tactics. Use of child soldiers (individuals under the age of 18), unlawful occupation practices including forced conscription and enslavement of occupied populations, reprisals against civilians, failure to distinguish between combatants and non-combatants, and forced marriage in conflict zones.

Liability extends beyond direct perpetrators. Commanders and political leaders may be held accountable for ordering, enabling, or failing to prevent war crimes committed under their authority, and prosecution is not limited to declared conflicts.

Procedures

Initiation. Cases are initiated by referral from a member state. All other member states are notified immediately on initiation.
Trial. Proceedings are public, transparent, and bound by standards of fairness and impartiality. Defendants have the right to counsel, the presumption of innocence, and interpretation services. Witness protection and admissibility of evidence are governed by published Court protocols.
Appeals. Panel decisions are final. Appeals are accepted only on grounds of procedural irregularity or substantial new evidence, and are heard by a freshly convened panel.
Sentencing. Available sentences include imprisonment, exile, fines, restitution, and sanctions.

Enforcement

The Court does not maintain its own enforcement arm. It relies on its member states to execute sentences, extradite indicted individuals, and provide investigative and witness support as required.

Forceful or military enforcement against non-member states is constrained. Such action requires a two-thirds vote of member states under the Charter, and unanimous consent under the standard Membership Agreement signed at accession. The intent of the threshold is to keep the Court from being used as a vehicle for unilateral military action by any single member.

Role in Epochs

Landfall-530 - Noble Blood: Established by treaty between The Second Lilaris Empire, New Ides, and Mirage Concord during the middle period of the epoch. Operates from Cadence until the collapse of central institutions in The Blaze.

Locations

Cadence: A purpose-built neutral city-state on land ceded by The Second Lilaris Empire, serving as the Court's headquarters and the only ground recognized by all signatories as outside national sovereignty.