Michael P. Scharf (professor)

= Biography =

Michael P. Scharf is Professor of Law, Director of the Frederick K. Cox International Law Center at Case Western Reserve University School of Law, and Director of the Summer Institute for Global Justice. Prof. Scharf is also co-founder of the [http://www.publicinternationallaw.org/ Public International Law & Policy Group] (PILPG), a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) which provides pro bono legal assistance to developing states and states in transition. Since 1995 PILPG has provided pro bono legal assistance to states and governments involved in peace negotiations, drafting post-conflict constitutions, and prosecuting war criminals. In February 2005, Scharf and the PILPG were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize [ [http://www.law.duke.edu/features/2005/scharf.html "Michael Scharf '88 nominated for Nobel Peace Prize." Duke Law News and Events.] ] by six governments and the Prosecutor of an International Criminal Tribunal for the work they have done to help in the prosecution of major war criminals, such as Slobodan Milošević, Charles Taylor (Liberia), and Saddam Hussein.

In 2004-05, Scharf served as a member of the international team of experts that provided training to the judges of the Iraqi High Tribunal, and in 2006 he led the first training session for the investigative judges and prosecutors of the newly established Cambodia Tribunal.

In 2002, Scharf established the War Crimes Research Office at Case Western Reserve University School of Law, which provides research assistance to the Prosecutors of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the International Criminal Court, the Cambodia Genocide Tribunal, and the Iraqi High Tribunal on issues pending before those international tribunals. [ [http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-31796012_ITM Mortland, Shannon. (June 18, 2007.) "Case law prof's dedication to preventing atrocities leads to renown for war crimes tribunal work." Crain's Cleveland Business] ]

During the first Bush and Clinton Administrations, Scharf served in the Office of the Legal Adviser of the U.S. Department of State, where he held the positions of Attorney-Adviser for Law Enforcement and Intelligence, Attorney-Adviser for United Nations Affairs, and delegate to the United Nations Human Rights Commission. In 1993, he was awarded the State Department's Meritorious Honor Award "in recognition of superb performance and exemplary leadership" in relation to his role in the establishment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

An internationally recognized expert in international criminal law, Scharf has testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations [ [http://www.iccnow.org/documents/1stSesPrepComSenatecfr.pdf "Is a U.N. International Criminal Court in the U.S. National Interest?" (July 23, 1998). Washington, D.C.:U.S. Government Printing Office. Available on the Internet from the Coalition for the International Criminal Court.] ] and the House Armed Services Committee [ [http://www.globalsecurity.org/security/library/congress/2006_h/060726-scharf.pdf "House Armed Services Committee Hearing on Standards of Military Commissions and Tribunals" (July 26, 2006).] ] ; his interviews and op eds have appeared in the Washington Post [ [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/23/AR2008072300557.html Kevin Sullivan and Peter Finn. (July 24, 2008). "Karadzic Case Offers Court a Chance to Repair Its
Washington Post] ] , Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Christian Science Monitor, and International Herald Tribune; and he has appeared on ABC World News Tonight, the NBC Today Show, Nightline, The O=Reilly Factor, The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer [ [http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/jan-june04/saddam_06-30.html NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, "Trying Saddam," June 30, 2004] ] , Minnesota Public Radio [ [http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/07/30/midmorning1/?refid=0 Minnesota Public Radio, “Karadzic Trial a Test for War Crimes Tribunal,” July 30, 2008 (1 hour interview). Audio available at minnesota.publicradio.org.] ] , Public Radio International (PRI) [ [http://www.theworld.org/?q=node/19506 PRI “The World,” “Saddam’s Final Chapter,” July 16, 2008, Newton and Scharf interview about Saddam on Trial. Audio available at www.theworld.org.] ] ,The Charlie Rose Show [ [http://www.charlierose.com/guests/michael-scharf The Charlie Rose Show: A conversation about Osama Bin Laden's crimes] ] [ [http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=Michael+Scharf+&hl=en&sitesearch=# Charlie Rose Show, October 29, 2001, video available on Google.] ] , the BBC, CNN, Voice of America [ [http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2007-07/2007-07-12-voa11.cfm?CFID=20085413&CFTOKEN=12519847 Voice of America, "US Professors and Students Laid Groundwork for Charles Taylor Trial," July 12, 2007] ] , and NPR. Scharf also hosts [http://law.case.edu/grotian-moment-blog/ Grotian Moment] , an award-winning International Criminal Law Blog. He is a frequent contributor of scholarly articles to the [http://www.asil.org American Society of International Law] (ASIL).

Bibliography

Books

* [http://us.macmillan.com/enemyofthestate Enemy of the State: The Trial and Execution of Saddam Hussein. St. Martin's Press (2008.) With Michael A. Newton.]
* [http://www.cap-press.com/books/1625 Saddam on Trial: Understanding and Debating the Iraqi High Tribunal. Carolina Academic Press (2006). With Gregory S. McNeal.]
* [http://www.rowmanlittlefield.com/Catalog/SingleBook.shtml?command=Search&db=^DB/CATALOG.db&eqSKUdata=0742518558&thepassedurl=thepassedurl Peace with Justice? War Crimes and Accountability in the Former Yugoslavia. Rowman & Littlefield (2002). With Paul Williams.] (Winner of the International Association of Penal Law's 2003 Book of the Year Award for Scholarly and Theoretical Contribution to the Field.)
* [http://www.continuumbooks.com/Books/detail.aspx?ReturnURL=/Search/default.aspx&CountryID=2&ImprintID=2&BookID=116961 Slobodan Milosevic on Trial: A Companion. Continuum Press (2002). With William Schabas.]
* [http://www.brill.nl/default.aspx?partid=210&pid=28060 The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Transnational Publishers (1998). (2 vols) With Virginia Morris.] (Winner of the 1999 American Society of International Law Certificate of Merit for the Outstanding Book in International Law).

Articles & Op Eds

* [http://jicj.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/5/2/258 "The Iraqi High Tribunal: A Viable Experiment in International Justice?" Journal of International Criminal Justice (April 2007).]
* [http://discuss.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/zforum/04/opinion_outlook122004.htm "Outlook: Trying Saddam", Washington Post (December 20, 2004).]
* [http://articles.latimes.com/2002/oct/06/opinion/op-scharf6 "Don’t Just Fight Him; Indict Him", Los Angeles Times (October 6, 2002).]
* [http://articles.latimes.com/2001/nov/18/opinion/op-5554 "Prosecute Terrorists on a World Stage", Los Angeles Times (November 18, 2001). With Paul R. Williams.]
* [http://www.asil.org/insights/insigh61.htm "The Lockerbie Trial Verdict", ASIL Insights (February 2001).]
* [http://www.asil.org/insights/insigh53.htm "The Special Court for Sierra Leone", ASIL Insights (October 2000).]
* [http://www.asil.org/insights/insigh35.htm "The Indictment of Slobodan Milosevic", ASIL Insights (June 1999).]
* [http://www.asil.org/insights/insigh23.htm "Results of the Rome Conference for an International Criminal Court", ASIL Insights (August 1998).]
* [http://www.asil.org/insights/insigh20.htm "Rome Diplomatic Conference for an International Criminal Court", ASIL Insights (June 1998).]

References