Ukrainian judge with 30-year experience did not pass selection for the ICC

The Consultative Committee on Nomination of Judges for the International Criminal Court (ICC) has found that the Ukrainian candidate, Lev Kishakevych, does not meet the requirements for appointment as a judge. This is reported by Hlavkom citing the committee's report.

The document notes that Kishakevych has more than 30 years of experience in criminal law and criminal procedure. The committee positively assessed his work in judicial positions, his experience in the prosecutor's office, and his participation in professional events addressing criminal law and the handling of war crimes.

However, the decisive factor was language requirements. According to the Rome Statute, an ICC judge must be proficient in at least one of the court's two working languages — English or French. The committee noted that Kishakevych does not know French, and his English proficiency is insufficient to perform the duties of a judge.

During the interview, the language barrier prevented the committee from fully assessing the candidate's knowledge of the Rome Statute, ICC practice, and other aspects of the court's work. In addition, Kishakevych did not undergo voluntary language testing conducted by the Language Services Unit of the Court's Secretariat.

In conclusion, the committee concluded that the insufficient level of proficiency in working languages would not allow the candidate to immediately perform the duties of a judge effectively, and therefore he does not meet the requirements for appointment.

As a reminder, in April the competition commission identified Lev Kishakevych as the main candidate for the ICC judgeship from Ukraine. The backup candidate was Oksana Senatorova. Then-deputy head of the Office of the President, Iryna Mudra, stated that both candidates have the necessary experience, professional reputation, and competence to represent Ukraine at the ICC.

Earlier, the ICC member states voted to dismiss Karim Khan from the position of Chief Prosecutor. The basis for this decision were accusations of sexual harassment toward a subordinate woman attorney.

Khan led the ICC Prosecutor's Office from 2021 year. In March 2023 year, precisely on his recommendation, the court issued arrest warrants for the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and the Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova on suspicion of illegal deportation of Ukrainian children.