The Politics of Gender Justice at the International Criminal Court

"Louise Chappell has penned a significant book.  Far removed from a recitation of expanded sexual violence provisions within the Rome Statute, or a reiteration of the constricted definition of gender, Chappell sharply defies how to tally whether the International Criminal Court has delivered upon a gender justice mandate that is inextricable from its very institutional legitimacy." - Blog of the European Journal of International Law "This is a grounded and highly innovative assessment of the experiences of women under the consolidating regime of international criminal law. Combining qualitative, quantitative and theoretical insights, this book provides us with a state of the art analysis that is essential reading for all those interested in the future of gender justice under international law." - Fionnuala Ni Aoláin, Robina Chair in Law, Public Policy, and Society, University of Minnesota Law School "This pioneering book offers a riveting account of the struggles of the ICC - and gender justice actors in and around the Court - to put its innovative gender mandate into action. It provides a clear-sighted and unflinching appraisal that is empirically rich, politically astute, and theoretically sophisticated. Chappell does not shirk from trenchant critique of the Court's faltering progress and indifferent record to date but she does so with nuance and a deep understanding of the wider context. The book exposes a complex of institutional, cultural and political obstacles that stand in the way of gender justice, but also the small wins, green shoots and future opportunities for positive change. The Politics of Gender Justice at the International Criminal Court will quickly become the benchmark for feminist scholarship not only on the ICC but also on gendered institutions of global governance more widely." - Fiona Mackay, Professor of Politics, University of Edinburgh "With theoretical breadth, penetrating analysis, and empirical richness, Louise Chappell explains the breakthroughs and roadblocks of the ICC's groundbreaking ventures into gender justice. For understanding, predicting, implementing and advocating the Court's gender justice trajectory, this book will stand as the foundational resource for scholars, practitioners, and activists alike." - Benjamin N. Schiff, Professor of Politics, Oberlin College "Louise Chappell has conducted a superb examination of the state of gender justice at the International Criminal Court (ICC). This significant and thoroughly-researched work provides a groundbreaking account of the promise created with the adoption of the Rome Statute, which was drafted to undo centuries of gender inequality in international criminal and humanitarian law. She carefully tracks the ways in which that promise has - and has not - been realized in the practice of the ICC. This book skillfully bridges the sometimes separate worlds of gender researchers and those interested in international criminal justice, and is easily accessible to scholars and practitioners alike." - Valerie Oosterveld, Associate Professor and Associate Dean, University of Western Ontario Law School