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International Criminal Law

Former member of chambers Adrian Fulford QC was appointed the first British Judge at the International Criminal Court ("ICC") in the Hague and he is currently the presiding judge in the first case before the ICC of Prosecutor v Lubanga Dyilo.

Paul Troop was Junior Counsel in the case of Prosecutor v Haradinaj et al in the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague, representing former Kosovo Liberation Army guerrilla fighters. This made history as the first case in which no defence team put forward a defence case. Michael Mansfield QC and Michael Topolski QC  previously appeared for the defence in the ICTY in case of Prosecutor v Limaj et al, where two of the three accused were notably acquitted of all counts on the indictment.

Peter Herbert is appearing in the appeal in the case of Prosecutor v Barayagwiza, "the Media" case, representing a leader of the Hutu Party in the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda ("ICTR").

Rebekah Wilson is currently working with the Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice  www.iccwomen.org , working on cases before the International Criminal Court on behalf of victims, primarily of the gender based violence in Uganda and Central African Republic and in the Democratic Republic of Congo case of Prosecutor v Lubanga.

Hugh Southey has been admitted to the list of approved counsel who may appear before the International Criminal Court.

Members of chambers are heavily involved in cases of universal jurisdiction for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Stephen Kamlish QC led Paul Troop in the case of Application for Arrest Warrant against Doron Almog, the first successful application for an arrest warrant under the Geneva Conventions Act 1957 for War Crimes.

Michel Massih QC also led Paul Troop in the previous case of Application for Arrest Warrant Against General Shaul Mofaz ICLQ vol 53, July 2004 pp 769 - 774.

Michel Massih QC is leading a team of international and criminal lawyers advising senior members of the Syrian Army in relation to the UN Criminal Tribunal established following the murder of Rafik Hariri, the Lebanese Prime Minister.Michel Massih QC was instructed on behalf of the leader of the opposition in the Maldives to defend him against allegations of terrorism.

Recent news

• UN Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia Appeals Tribunal Orders Retrial
  The UNICTY Appeals Tribunal today ordered the retrial of the three co-defendants in the case of Prosecutor v Haradinaj et al.
  21 July 2010
• Michel Massih QC - BLD Lawyer of the Month!
  Congratulations to Michel Massih QC, the world’s sole practising Queen’s Counsel of Palestinian origin, who has been selected as BLD’s Lawyer of the Month.
  5 July 2010
• Paul Troop Admitted to Defence Counsel List at the Special Tribunal for Lebanon
  Paul Troop has been admitted to the list of counsel eligible to represent accused before the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, based in the Hague. His appointment increases the number of Tooks counsel eligible to represent defendants and victims before the international criminal tribunals.
  15 December 2009
• Tooks Team Receives Special Recognition at 2009 Bar Pro Bono Awards
  A Tooks team, consisting of Paul Troop, Jude Bunting, James Mehigan, Richard Reynolds, Fouzia Khan and Greg O’Ceallaigh, was one of three nominees to be given special recognition at the award ceremony on 7 November 2009.
  12 November 2009
• Forced Labour and Trafficking in Persons, Turin 16-20 November 2009
  Sandhya Drew will be carrying out judicial training on forced labour and trafficking in persons at the ILO/ UNICRI training centre in Turin during the week of November 16-20.
  26 October 2009
• Sandhya Drew Invited to Speak at the Human Trafficking Conference
  The Human Trafficking Conference, organised by McKay Law Solicitors and Advocates, will be held in central London on the 4th November 2009
  22 October 2009
• Baha Mousa Public Inquiry
  The public inquiry examining the circumstances which led to the death of Baha Mousa and the ill-treatment of nine other Iraqi civilians while they were being detained and questioned by the British Army in Iraq in 2003 began sitting today.
  21 September 2009
• Peter Herbert to Represent Augustin Ngirabatware in the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
  Augustin Ngirabatware, who is charged with genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, was arrested in Germany and extradited to stand trial before the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda ("ICTR") in Arusha, Tanzania.
  14 September 2009
• Nick Wrack Instructed to Represent Joe Glenton, the British Soldier Facing a Court Martial for Refusing to Fight in Afghanistan
  A Lance Corporal in the Royal Logistic Corps, Joe Glenton wrote to Gordon Brown at the end of July this year explaining why he will not fight. He plans to deny the charge of desertion because he believes the conflict is unlawful.
  3 August 2009
• Paul Troop Writes on Secret Evidence for the Guardian
  As part of the Guardian's Comment Is Free Liberty Central series, Paul Troop writes on the government's increasing use of secret evidence and the serious consequences for basic fair trial rights.
  15 July 2009

• 1967 Michael Mansfield QC (1989)
• 1979 Michel Massih QC (1999)
• 1986 Michael Topolski QC (2001)
• 1979 Stephen Kamlish QC (2003)
• 1996 Hugh Southey QC (2010)
• 1982 Peter Herbert OBE
• 1998 Paul Troop
• 1998 Rebekah Wilson
• 2001 Kamran Choudhry