While the International Criminal Court's (‘ICC’) work, like that of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (‘ICTY’), will continue to focus largely on its investigative and judicial work, it also has an historic opportunity to support transitional justice efforts in the countries in which it works. This support will no doubt vary from country to country, sometimes providing information and evidence to national prosecutors, in other cases to truth and reconciliation commissions, and perhaps to other investigations as well. Thus, some advanced work, including the establishment of internal structures and databases, would be very useful in preparation for those opportunities. Hopefully, the ICC will learn from the positive aspects of the ICTY's transfer of cases and materials while avoiding the ICTY's first decade of largely failing to engage with the region and its legal professionals in meaningful ways, thus losing opportunities to make a difference in terms of transitional justice and reconciliation.

Overview

A fruitful partnership has developed between the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (‘ICTY’ or ‘Tribunal’) and judicial institutions in the countries of the former Yugoslavia. This has taken a number of forms, including the transfer of cases and materials to courts and prosecutors in the region as well as other forms of cooperation between the ICTY and national judicial authorities. The most significant of these relationships is with judicial officials and institutions in Bosnia-Herzegovina (‘BiH’). In BiH, the most important developments have occurred between the ICTY and the BiH State Court and BiH State Prosecutor's Office (‘POBiH’), hybrid institutions established under Bosnian law but with a mixed or ‘hybrid’ character of both national and international judges, prosecutors and staff.