ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the International Military Tribunal (IMT) trial and the “Principles of Nuremberg”. It explores the influence of these principles on the doctor’s trial, as well as the trial’s international character. The chapter focuses on an evaluation of the legal valence of the “Nuremberg Code” in public international law. It assesses the relationship between the “Nuremberg Code” and codes of medical ethics, in particular the Helsinki Declaration. To understand the “Nuremberg Code’s” significance in public international law, it is necessary to analyze the post-World War II trials at Nuremberg. The practice of public international law in the post-IMT era has in large part confirmed the validity of the Principles of Nuremberg. The greatest contribution of the Nuremberg trial was that for the first time war criminals were condemned before an international tribunal under rules of public international law.
