Digital Commons Network^™

Extraordinary Language In The Courts Of Cambodia: Interpreting The Limiting Language And Personal Jurisdiction Of The Cambodian Tribunal, Sean Morrison

Sean Morrison

As the new Extraordinary Chambers for the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) prepares to begin trials this year, one issue that will confront it is the meaning of the limiting terms described in its establishing statute. Prosecutions before the ECCC are limited to “senior leaders of Democratic Kampuchea and those who were most responsible” for the crimes committed during the Khmer Rouge regime. This phrase raises two important questions for the court: whether this limiting language defines the court’s personal jurisdiction, and if so, what the scope of these phrases is.

This paper will attempt to understand the function and scope …