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Virtual Justice. Remote Proceedings before the International Criminal Court – Threat or Opportunity?

This grant was awarded in the PRELUDIUM-BIS 4 competition. The purpose of this program is to support the education of doctoral students by providing a PhD scholarship allowing to carry out a research project, and promoting international mobility.

Aims and analysis details:

The aim of the project is to analyze the clashing interests of defendants, victims, witnesses and the public when proceedings are conducted remotely, i.e., using technology that allows all parties to the proceedings and the public to connect remotely. The main research question is how to properly balance the often mutually exclusive rights of those involved in criminal proceedings when the proceedings are conducted remotely. In order to find the answer we should assume that the digitalization of the criminal process is inevitable. Since technology is present in our daily lives, also the criminal justice system cannot be left behind.

The analysis has been be carried out on the example of criminal proceedings before the International Criminal Court (ICC). The reasons for choosing such a research background are several. First, the ICC has a unique understanding of the use of technology during criminal proceedings and significantly distinguishes itself in this regard, through its long-standing use of technology and infrastructural adaptation to the digital transformation long before the pandemic. Secondly, ICC, formed at the intersection of the inquisitorial and adversarial systems, carries in its criminal proceedings a unique blend of continental and common law traditions. As a result, the analysis of the problem based on the example of ICC proceedings has more universal appeal. Third, the impact of the ICC on national systems should not be underestimated, especially in the context of the mechanism of positive complementarity. National criminal courts look up to the achievements of the ICC and often refer to its jurisprudence. Accordingly, the conduct of remote hearings by the ICC and the principles applied to date are likely to be further followed by national courts.

Information on the project:

● Project leader: Karolina Kremens

● PhD candidate: Kamil Sobański

● Project duration: 2023–2027

● Granting institution: National Science Centre (NCN PRELUDIUM-BIS 4)

● Amount: 522.914 PLN

List of publications:

1. Kremens K., Peristeridou C., ‘Everything, Everywhere All At Once’: Virtual Criminal Justice in Europe, European Journal of Crime, Criminal Law and Criminal Justice, 33 (1–2), 2025, pp. 1–15.
2. Sobański K., Rethinking Public Access to Criminal Trials in the Context of Virtual Justice, European Journal of Crime, Criminal Law and Criminal Justice, 33 (1–2), 2025, pp. 84–101.
3. Sobański K., Evolution of Remote Participation of the Accused and Victim in International Criminal Proceedings, International Criminal Law Review, 25 (1), 2024, pp. 167–191.
4. Sobański K., Kremens K., Zbrodnia i kara w świecie cyfrowym: osądzanie zbrodni międzynarodowych w międzynarodowym postępowaniu karnym [Crime and Punishment in the Digital World: Adjudicating International Crimes in International Criminal Proceedings] [in:] Hominum causa omne ius constitutum sit. Księga jubileuszowa Profesora Piotra Hofmańskiego; eds. Paweł Czarnecki, Sonia Głogowska, Adam Górski, Andrzej Sakowicz, Andrzej Światłowski, Wolters Kluwer Polska, 2024, pp. 698–706.
5. Sobański K., Zasada jawności i jej rozumienie w międzynarodowych postępowaniach karnych [The principle of openness and its understanding in international criminal proceedings], Nowa Kodyfikacja Prawa Karnego [New Criminal Law Codification], 71, 2024, pp. 109–130.

List of presentations:

1. Sobański K., Is There a Defendant’s Right to Be (Online) Present in the Trial Before the International Criminal Court? – the 3rd Doctoral Seminar on International Criminal Law, International Humanitarian Law and International Human Rights Law (March 18–19 2024, the Siracusa International Institute for Criminal Justice and Human Rights).
2. Sobański K., Wirtualna sprawiedliwość. Postępowania zdalne przed Międzynarodowym Trybunałem Karnym – zagrożenie czy szansa? [Virtual Justice. Remote Proceedings before the International Criminal Court – Threat or Opportunity?] – presentation of the PhD project at the International Law Association (ILA) Young Researchers Seminar (April 5 2024, Kraków).
3. Kremens K., Virtual Defendant – benefits and threats of remote presence of the accused in international criminal proceedings – conference inaugurating the establishment of the Kraków Centre for International Criminal Justice ‘Contemporary Challenges of International Criminal Justice’  (June 1 2024, Kraków).
4. Sobański K., Virtual Justice. Remote Proceedings before the International Criminal Court – Threat or Opportunity? – presentation of the PhD project at the International Law Working Group seminar (June 27 2024, European University Institute (EUI) – more about the stay).
5. Sobański K., Zasada jawności w postępowaniu przed Międzynarodowym Trybunałem Karnym: wstępne wyniki przeprowadzonych badań i analiza ich metodologii [The Principle of Openness in Proceedings Before the International Criminal Court: Preliminary Research Findings and Methodological Analysis] – AIDP Young Penalists’ PARK: Polish Academic Roundtable on Criminal Justice (November 15 2024, Poznań).
6. Sobański K., Toward the Digitalization of the Right to Interpretation: Lessons from the International Criminal Court – the DigiRights Project Final Conference: ‘The Digitalisation of Defence Rights: Time for New Perspectives… And Directives?’ (January 30–31 2025, KU Leuven).
7. Sobański K., The Right to be Present and Remote Participation in International Criminal Court Trials – Maastricht Institute for Criminal Sciences lunch seminar (April 23 2025, Maastricht University).
8. Sobański K., Rethinking Public Access to Criminal Trials in the Context of Virtual Justice – European Journal of Crime, Criminal Law and Criminal Justice’s Virtual Justice in Europe seminar (May 14 2025, University of Wrocław).
9. Sobański K., Perspectives on Victims Interests and Remote Participation in International Criminal Court Proceedings – Young Dutch Penalists Group (YOUNGIS) workshop (May 20 2025, Universiteit Leiden – Campus Den Haag).
10. Kremens K., Sobański K., participation in the Workshop for the Expert Research Group: ‘Best Practices for Remote Participation in Criminal Proceedings’ (June 12–13 2025, the International Institute for the Sociology of Law in Oñati).

Summary of the project: https://www.ncn.gov.pl/sites/default/files/listy-rankingowe/2022-09-15du59ho/streszczenia/567740-en.pdf.