Who are the ICC judges assigned to Rodrigo Duterte's trial?

The International Criminal Court (ICC) Presidency has constituted the Trial Chamber that will hear the crimes against humanity case against former President Rodrigo Duterte.

In a 50-page document, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I committed Duterte to face trial on the charges linked to killings in his deadly war on drugs when he was mayor of Davao City and later as President of the Philippines.

The ICC Presidency, in a document dated April 24, named Joanna Korner, Keebong Paek, and Nicolas Guillou as trial judges in the Duterte case.

The tribunal earlier said the three judges should not be previously involved in the Pre-Trial Chamber.

Once constituted, the Trial Chamber will hold conferences, consult with the parties, set the date for the start of the trial, and adopt the necessary procedures.

READ: What happens next in Rodrigo Duterte’s ICC case? 

The ICC said the Trial Chamber will also rule on preliminary issues, including the timing and manner of disclosure of evidence.

Find out more about the ICC judges in Duterte’s trial based on information in the ICC website:

Joanna KornerPracticing criminal law for over 45 years, Joanna Korner is a British judge who studied at the Inns of Court School of Law.

She has a 10-year term in the ICC from March 2021 to March 2030 in the Trial Division.

Korner was appointed Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George ("CMG") for services to international law in 2004.

Before joining the ICC, she served as a judge of the Crown Court of England and Wales since 2012, handling criminal cases including fraud and murder.

She became the Queen’s counsel in 1993 and prosecuted and defended cases in England and Wales courts.

From 1999 to 2004 and 2009 to 2012, Korner served as senior prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, which became six independent countries, namely Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Kosovo.

Korner also organized and taught in several training programs on international criminal law and advocacy for judges and lawyers from different regions.

She served as senior legal adviser to the Chief Prosecutor of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2004 to 2005, during the establishment of a War Crimes Section in the country's State Prosecutor's Office.

Keebong PaekKeebong Paek served as a public prosecutor for South Korea as he began his career in the legal field in 1992.

His job involves conducting extensive investigations, prosecuting criminal cases, and overseeing trials related to a wide range of crimes.

He studied law at Seoul National University, obtained a Master of Laws at Columbia Law School, and a doctorate at Hanyang University.

Paek has a 10-year term from March 2024 to March 2033 in the Trial Division at the ICC.

He served as deputy director and later as a director at the Ministry of Justice, where he was responsible for managing ICC-related matters and drafting the implementation bill for Korea's ratification of the Rome Statute.

He also represented South Korea at ICC Preparatory Commission sessions and the Kampala Review Conference.

Paek worked at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, where he provided crucial support to member states in implementing the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.

After 22 years of working as a prosecutor, Paek became an attorney at Kim&Chang in 2014.

He specialized in law enforcement and regulatory compliance, with a particular focus on white-collar crime, extradition, mutual legal assistance, and cross-border asset recovery.

Paek also assisted companies in building compliance systems and conducting internal investigations.

Nicolas GuillouStarting his career as an investigative judge in France, Nicolas Guillou obtained his master’s degree in International and European Criminal Law from Sorbonne University.

He graduated from the French National School for the Judiciary, where he regularly teaches and manages training programs for judges on international justice.

Guillou has a 10-year term in the ICC Trial Division from March 2024 to March 2033.

Before his post as ICC judge, Guillou served as Pre-Trial Judge at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers for four years.

From 2015 to 2019, Guillou worked as Chef de Cabinet to the President of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

He also worked as a liaison prosecutor at the US Department of Justice between 2012 and 2015, where he facilitated judicial cooperation in criminal and civil matters.

Guillou served in several positions in the French Ministry of Justice from 2006 to 2012.

This includes the deputy head of the Commercial Law Section, adviser to the Minister on Criminal Affairs, and diplomatic Adviser to the Minister. 

Paolina Massida, ICC principal counsel of the Office of Public Counsel for Victims, said before the start of the trial begins, the court needs to resolve the expected appeal of Duterte’s camp in the confirmation of charges.

“And the defense has five days from the issuance of a decision to file a request for leave. If this request is filed, then the prosecution enters the... We have three days to respond and the pre-trial chamber will issue a decision. This is normally a short procedure,” Massida said, according to Raffy Tima’s “24 Oras” report.

The camp of the former president had said it would appeal to the Pre-Trial Chamber’s decision.

Duterte is expected to be present in court during his trial before the ICC, as Article 63 of the Rome Statute states that the accused should be present during the trial.

Any other issues about the accused’s participation shall be decided by the ICC judges.

A total of 539 victims have been authorized to participate in the proceedings.

They will be represented by Filipino lawyers Joel Butuyan, Gilbert Andres, and Paolina Massidda, the Principal Counsel of the Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV), who will act as a single team of common legal representatives.

Once the Trial Chamber 3 set the first hearing, Massida said they will request to immediately start the hearing because the victims have been waiting for it for a long time. 

“So the victims' participation is very important to really provide the extent of the victimization so that the judges will understand. But it's also important for the victims because for them it's also a way of seeing justice done and being able to turn the page after the terrible events that they suffer from,” Massida said.

She added that based on her experience, a marathon hearing will likely happen, but its duration will depend on the number of witnesses and Duterte’s health.

The former president was arrested in the Philippines by local authorities on March 11, 2025 and has been detained since then at the ICC Detention facility in Scheveningen in The Hague, Netherlands. —RF, GMA News