International law and criminal jurisdiction

Customary international law allows for concurrent jurisdiction of states

59This may expose persons to multiple instances of liability, unless the second state to consider the matter applies a rule of ne bis in idem(also called the prohibition of double jeopardy)

Much of international criminal jurisdiction law is concerned with transnational crime, and thus with where crimes occur for legal purposes when in fact they cross borders

For purposes of localizing crime to a given state, the notion of an element of a crime is often vital

The international legal basis for universal jurisdiction – and therefore the basis on which domestic legislation may authorise national law enforcement agencies and courts to exercise universal jurisdiction – is the principle of universality, which constitutes a firmly settled permissive rule of customary international law