ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the strategic work of prosecutors at two significant moments of the development of the field of international criminal law. The significant moments include at the stage of the genesis, at the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg (IMT), and at the International Criminal Court (ICC), the first permanent court of international criminal justice. The chapter focuses on the four prosecutorial opening statements at the IMT, and contrasts these with the prosecutorial opening statements in the first three cases of the ICC. It argues that the legal justifications should form part of a broader sociology of practice. The ICC thus finds itself in a paradoxical position in which there is a seemingly strong 'common sense' over international criminal justice as a legitimate response to mass violence. The chapter focuses on how innovative international legal institutions and processes are justified over time is indeed a way to emphasize processes of stability, innovation, and change in the field of international criminal law.
