Chambers

The judiciary of the Court is composed of three Divisions:

1. The Appeals Division
2. The Trial Division
3. The Pre-Trial Division

The judicial functions of the Court are carried out in each Division by Chambers.

The Appeals Division is composed of the President of the Court and four other judges, the Trial Division and the Pre-Trial Division of not less than six judges each.

According to Article 39(1) of the Rome Statute, the assignment of judges to Divisions is based on the nature of the functions to be performed by each Division and the qualifications and experience of the judges elected to the Court, in such a way that each division shall contain an appropriate combination of expertise in criminal law and procedure and in international law.

The Trial and Pre-Trial Divisions are composed predominantly of judges with criminal trial experience. The judges are assigned to these Divisions for a period of three years, and thereafter until the completion of any case the hearing of which has already commenced in the Division concerned. The Presidency can decide to attach temporarily a judge of the Trial Division to the Pre-Trial Division and vice versa if the Court's workload so requires (Article 39(4)).The judges assigned to the Appeals Division serve exclusively in that division for their entire term of office. From amongst the members of each Division a President of the respective Division is elected to oversee that Division’s administration for a period of one year. 

The Appeals Chamber consists of all five judges of the Appeals Division. The Pre-Trial and Trial Chambers consist of three judges each; many of the functions of the Pre-Trial Chamber may be carried out by a Single Judge. The Presiding Judge of a Chamber is elected by the judges of the Chamber in question. The Appeals Chamber decides on a Presiding Judge for each appeal.