The Treaty for the International Anti-Corruption Court

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences published “The Progressing Proposal for An International Anti-Corruption Court” written by Judge Mark Wolf, Justice Richard Goldstone and Professor Robert Rotberg in 2022. This article serves as the academic foundation of the Campaign to Establish the International Anti-Corruption Court (IACC). By now, over 50 former heads of state and governments, 100 civil society organizations, and more than 30 Nobel laureates signed the Declaration in support of the IACC.The IACC campaign, coordinated by III Europe and its American counterpart, gathered a group of over 70 experts from 5 continents to create a Draft Treaty for the IACC. Over the course of the past year, these Treaty Drafting Experts have worked at full speed to produce a Draft Treaty to establish the IACC. They work in one or more of the IACC subcommittees on a pro bono basis, investigating different legal components of the IACC Treaty. 

Eventually, states will sign the IACC Treaty to allow the IACC to investigate and prosecute crimes such as bribery and money laundering

The Treaty is drafted to provide a detailed document which can be reviewed by scholars, NGOs and states allowing them to assess the potential impact of the IACC and to provide further input for the benefit of the IACC. Eventually, the Treaty for the IACC would form the legal basis of the IACC, governing the functioning of the court. The IACC would, similar to the International Criminal Court (ICC), be a permanent Treaty-based international criminal court. The ICC was established by the Rome Statute in 2002. By signing this Treaty, states agreed to give the ICC the power to investigate and prosecute war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Similarly, states will eventually sign the IACC Treaty to allow the IACC to investigate and prosecute those responsible for corruption crimes, such as bribery, embezzlement and money laundering. 

The Treaty will be an advocacy tool, a basis for input from third parties and a starting point for inter-state negotiations

Before signing the IACC Treaty, states will organize negotiations to determine the conditions under which they want to establish the IACC. Our draft Treaty has a triple function. Firstly, it will be used as an advocacy tool to show different stakeholders why the IACC would be an effective and efficient tool to fight corrupt government officials and their enablers. Secondly, creating a draft Treaty functions as a basis for input from civil society, states, scholars and businesses. It is important to consolidate with a wide and diverse group of stakeholders to assure the draft Treaty reflects their expertise. Thirdly, the draft IACC Treaty will serve as a starting point for the inter-state negotiations where interested states discuss under which conditions they will sign and ratify the IACC Treaty.

Creating a draft IACC Treaty is a crucial step in the campaign for and establishment of the IACC

The IACC would be a forum to fairly and effectively prosecute and punish kleptocrats and their transnational networks of co-conspirators. Creating a draft IACC Treaty is a primary objective of III Europe, as it is a crucial step in the campaign for and establishment of the IACC. Grand corruption – the abuse of public power for private gain by a nation’s leaders (kleptocrats) – is a major barrier to responding effectively to pandemics, fighting climate change, mitigating refugee crises, promoting democracy and human rights, meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals, establishing international peace and security, and securing a more just, rules-based global order. Routine extortion by kleptocrats threatens the integrity of markets for goods and services by creating unfair advantages for unethical business. 

Please visit iaccourt.org for more information about the IACC Treaty. For regular updates on the work and activities of III Europe, please subscribe to our IACC Campaign newsletter.