The Genesis and Critics of the Prosecutors Amicus Curiae in International Law

The article traces in detail the origins of the prosecutor amicus curiae in the practice of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. This mechanism will subsequently be endorsed by all the ad hoc international criminal tribunals. It is noted that their emergence is the result of an unsuccessful experience in prosecuting offences against the administration of justice by the Tribunal under the previous legal framework. It is also stressed that, despite its effectiveness, the prosecutor amicus curiae mechanism cannot constitute the central component of the policy of prosecuting such acts and that, at this stage, it may even be considered an obstacle to its formation, given the occasional nature of the prosecutor amicus curiaes intervention in the international criminal proceedings and lack of continuity. As an alternative, it is proposed to establish a special independent organ - the Prosecutor for the offences against the administration of justice - in the international criminal tribunals, including the International Criminal Court.