ICC judges hold annual retreat focussed on the disciplinary regime for elected officials

On 29 September 2026, the judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) held their annual judicial retreat in the Netherlands. The retreat concentrated on proposals developed by the judges to amend the Court’s legal framework concerning the disciplinary regime for elected officials. In addition, the judges of the Court agreed on several amendments to the ICC Code of Judicial Ethics and the Chambers Practice Manual.

At the retreat, the judges agreed to amend Chapter 8 of the Regulations of the Court concerning disciplinary measures in order to clarify the applicable procedures and align the Regulations with the provisions of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence relating to the disciplinary regime for elected officials as amended by the Assembly of States Parties in 2025. The proposed amendments agreed by the judges will be submitted to the Advisory Committee on Legal Texts. 

At the retreat, the judges also agreed on several amendments to the ICC Code of Judicial Ethics. The judges agreed to amend article 12 of the Code to expressly acknowledge that non-compliance with the ICC Code of Judicial Ethics may amount to misconduct and that the ethical standards set out in the Code are binding. The judges also finalised the language of an additional paragraph to be added to article 10 of the Code concerning social media use by ICC judges. The revised ICC Code of Judicial Ethics will be published shortly. 

Finally, the judges sought to enhance internal working practices by updating the ‘Guideline on Trial Preparation and Judgment Drafting’ annexed to the Chambers Practice Manual on the basis of lessons learned, including the addition of best practices for trial preparation. The judges also updated a procedural template for Conduct of Proceeding decisions annexed to the Chambers Practice Manual, as well as decided to make such template publicly available. The amendment of these annexes to the Chambers Practice Manual have been agreed by the judges and will be published shortly. 

For further information, please contact the ICC Public Affairs Unit: PublicAffairs.Unit@icc-cpi.int . You can also follow the Court’s activities on Twitter/X, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Flickr.