CONFERENCES

Since its inception, the International Society for the Reform of Criminal Law has given high priority to the organization of conferences, workshops and symposia on a wide range of topics consistent with its aims and purposes. What follows is a list of the various international meetings held, their topics, and locations.

Reform of the Criminal Law
The Inns of Court, London, England
July 1987

The organizational conference has already been described.

Reform of Sentencing, Parole, and Early Release
The Parliament Buildings, Ottawa, Canada
August 1988

Two hundred delegates from five continents participated. The conference considered the principles and objectives underlying sentencing and issues of judicial discretion, as well as controversies related to issues of early release, victim compensation, and the influence of media and public opinion.

Police Powers and Citizens' Rights
Opera House, Sydney, Australia
March 1989

This conference examined several issues dealing with the police and the range of powers they possess. Sessions examined the extent to which police action can control crime and discussed a range of problems in dealing with relations between police and the community.

Criminal Code Reform
Washington, D.C., USA
January 1990

Recent events in Canada, the UK, USA, France, New Zealand, Australia, and other countries made this a very relevant topic. The current state of law reform in various countries was discussed, as well as suggesting the range of just, effective, efficient, and economical elements that should be incorporated into such reform.

Equality in the Administration of Criminal Justice: Gender, Race, and Class
Assembly Chamber and Parliament House, Edinburgh, Scotland
August 1990

The fifth Society conference critically examined the incidence and sources of inequality in the administration of criminal justice in the jurisdictions of Society members.

Reform of Evidence
Vancouver, Canada
August 1992

The examination of this topic included various theories of proof, a comparative analysis of the theories of criminal evidence of different jurisdictions, cross-cultural perspectives on the proof process, and legal and constitutional considerations relating to the proof process.

100 Years of Criminal Codes
Ottawa, Canada
June 1993

This conference focused on the development of the criminal law in many jurisdictions in the 100 years since Stephen's criminal code was first adopted in Canada in 1893.

The Corporation and the Criminal Law - Victim and Violator
Hong Kong
December 1994

This conference comprehensively examined all aspects of the interaction of the criminal law and the modern corporation, from the intersection of the corresponding legal theories to the actual application of the criminal law to corporations.

The Media and the Criminal Justice System: Fair Trial vs. Free Press: an International Perspective
Santa Monica, California, USA
December 1995

The relationship of the media and the criminal justice system in many jurisdictions was considered with an examination of media influence on public policy, trial processes and investigations, among other issues.

Challenges to Criminal Justice in a Changing World
Whistler, British Columbia, Canada
August 1996

Three topics were examined at this conference: sentencing and corrections issues from an international perspective; the independence of judges and lawyers and the role of the judiciary and lawyers in implementing international human rights standards; and a follow-up of discussions initiated at the 1994 Hong Kong conference relating to the prevention, detection and prosecution of commercial crime.

Law & Justice: Where Now? - 10th Anniversary Conference
Inns of Court, London, England
July 1997

This conference explored: new approaches to the problem of youth crime; police investigative powers, the development of an international criminal court; and the role of national criminal justice systems in the battle against international organized crime.

Drugs, Criminal Justice and Social Policy: New Alternatives for an Old Problem
Sherbourne Conference Centre, Bridgetown, Barbados
August 1998

This conference examined the many issues involved in illegal drug use including the problems and responses of different jurisdictions, anti-corruption measures and actions to identify and seize proceeds of drug crimes. The conference also studied the alternative approaches to combating the problem from an economic perspective as well as the health, social and criminal justice policy choices that have arisen from the relationship between injection drug use and HIV/AIDS.

Commercial & Financial Fraud: A Comparative Perspective
St. Julian's Malta
July 1999

A comparative approach to the consideration of fraud in the fields of insurance, securities, banking, and others as well as national and international responses to these issues focused on current developments worldwide.

Human Rights & the Administration of Criminal Justice
Sandton, South Africa
December, 2000

This conference examined the development of the protection of human rights internationally and the influence of these developments on the national criminal justice systems in various jurisdictions and also examined the international response to human rights crimes, and current developments international criminal courts.

Politics, Crime and Criminal Justice
Canberra, Australia
August, 2001

This conference explored the inter-relationship of politics and criminal justice systems at local, national and international levels including international treaties, programs and cooperative measures adopted to combat corruption internationally; the inter-relationship of police, prosecutor and judiciary in the criminal justice system; media influences upon the development of criminal law, justice policy and the administration of the criminal justice system; the state of Law Reform Commissions; and a study of the situation in East Timor, with insights from and comparisons to other international initiatives to restore justice systems in areas of civil strife.

Technology and its Effects on Criminal Responsibility,
Security, and Criminal Justice
Charleston, SC, USA
December, 2002

The conference addressed the rapid advances of science and technology in the many different arenas related to crime and the enforcement and administration of the criminal law: new technological crime and security threats, which in turn have given rise to new technologies to combat these threats and other mechanisms to ensure a cooperative response by law enforcement and justice systems around the world; the use and admissibility of scientific evidence; the newest approaches and methods in the use of technology to improve the criminal justice system.  The use of technology by government and the appropriate balance between liberty and security was also debated both generally and in the context of discussing the abrogation of civil liberties and to what extent this is justified to counter terrorist threats.

Convergence of Criminal Justice Systems:
Building Bridges, Bridging the Gap
Den Haag, Netherlands
August, 2003

This conference provided a forum for the study of the differing approaches to international criminal justice systems, a comparative analysis of criminal law and its processes in the common and civil law, as well as a glimpse at the criminal justice systems of non-Western legal cultures.

Keeping Justice Systems Just and Accountable: A Principled Approach in Challenging Times
Montreal, Qc, Canada
August, 2004

This conference examined current challenges to national criminal justice systems and the developing international criminal justice system, and how these systems can become and then remain just and fair by adhering to established principles, norms and standards, including constitutional requirements. 

Modernisation of Criminal Justice Systems
Edinburgh, Scotland, U.K.                                 June, 2005
This conference examined the impetus for change in criminal justice systems, the rise of crime as a political subject, and the impact of technology and evidential techniques.  The conference also discussed modernisation of criminal justice systems in the post-conflict of failed states, and also looked at infrastructures of communities and how economic and social structures affect the modernisation process.

Justice for All  - Victims, Defendants, Prisoners, and the Community
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia                          July, 2006
The conference examined the criminal justice system to ensure that victims, defendants, prisoners, and the community receive a just outcome.  It examined critical pretrial issues, consistency in sentencing, the role of the victim in sentencing, the relevance of prisoner rehabilitation, sentencing courts, and punishment in general.

Twenty Years of  Criminal Justice Reform: Past Achievements and Future Challenges
Vancouver, BC, Canada                                   June, 2007

The 20th Anniversary Conference re-visited and re-assessed the topics including the development of international criminal law, the International Criminal Court and the ad hoc international tribunals; international security and the criminal law; human rights and equality in the administration of criminal justice; international legal cooperation; the reform of the law of evidence; police powers of search, seizure and arrest; criminal justice, and social and health policy relating to illicit drugs; criminal code reform; the media and criminal justice; the corporation and the criminal law; the reform of sentencing, parole and community supervision of offenders; addressing wrongful convictions; extradition and international prisoner transfer treaties; and restorative and aboriginal justice alternatives.

Codifying the Criminal Law: Modern Initiatives
Dublin, Ireland                                                 July, 2008
This conference took place against the backdrop of the launch in 2007 of the Irish Criminal Law Codification Project. Topics for discussion included the current Irish codification initiative; differing approaches to codification in the common law tradition; the constitutional framework of codification; codifying the general principles of criminal liability; codifying excuse & justification defences; & codifying the Special Part, with particular emphasis on homicide & sexual offences. In addition, discussions included terrorism and the criminal law; drugs legislation; sentencing; victims & witnesses in the criminal process; dangerous & persistent offenders; mental disorder & the criminal law; young offenders; & the criminal liability of corporations.

                                                          2009

While no international conference was held in 2009, two regional symposia were organized for local member participation.
Regional Symposium -  Vancouver, Canada
Regional Symposium - Nigeria

Economic Crime, Crimes against Economies, and Economic Influences on Crime
Lisbon, Portugal
June 2010

The theme of the 2010 conference was economic crime: offenses for which victims incur an economic cost or in which offenders act, individually or in concert, in order to gain financial returns. Some of these crimes pose a threat to whole economies and nation-states. The topics included Global and EU programmes to implement measures against international economic crime and against money-laundering, proceeds of crime and financing of terrorism, fraud, theft and extortion, identity theft, child pornography, piracy, crime and terror as well as crimes in narco and failed states and economic crimes that fund terrorism, the illegal arms trade, and gangs that threaten the existence of states.

Globalization of Crime – Criminal Justice Responses
Ottawa, Canada
August, 2011

This conference was hosted jointly with the International Centre from Criminal Law Reform and Criminal Justice Policy with a focus on emerging crimes and new approaches to combating crime. Topics included dealing with transnational organized criminal groups which traffick in drugs, firearms, counterfeit products, stolen natural resources and people, as well as smuggling migrants across borders and engaging in maritime piracy and cybercrime, and the responses of numerous jurisdictions to these plus other criminal justice concerns.