Duterte’s Lawyers Challenge ICC Jurisdiction

FORMER Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s legal team has formally contested the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) authority to investigate him, filing a jurisdictional challenge dated May 1, 2025. 

The move marks the latest attempt by Duterte’s camp to block the continuation of international proceedings over his administration’s deadly anti-drug campaign.

The challenge was submitted by Duterte’s lead counsel Nicholas Kaufman and associate counsel Prof. Dr. Dov Jacobs.

In their filing, they invoked Article 19(2)(a) of the Rome Statute, which allows a defendant to challenge the Court’s jurisdiction before trial proceedings advance any further.

“Pursuant to Article 19(2)(a) of the Rome Statute, the Defence for Mr. Rodrigo Roa Duterte hereby respectfully submits a challenge to the exercise of jurisdiction by the International Criminal Court,” the document stated.

Central to their argument is the claim that the ICC lacks the legal authority to investigate Duterte, as the Philippines had officially withdrawn from the Rome Statute—the treaty that established the ICC—effective March 17, 2019. 

Duterte’s legal team emphasized that the court’s Pre-Trial Chamber did not authorize an investigation until more than two years later, on September 15, 2021. They maintain that this timeline disqualifies the ICC from intervening in the matter.

“As a consequence, all procedural steps taken in the Situation and, subsequently, in the case against Mr Rodrigo Roa Duterte, lack legal foundation and should be nullified forthwith,” they claimed. 

The ICC’s investigation focuses on Duterte’s anti-drug campaign launched in 2016, during which thousands were killed in police operations and vigilante-style attacks. 

Despite the Philippines’ exit from the ICC in 2019, the Court maintains it retains jurisdiction over crimes allegedly committed while the country was still a member. 

Duterte made his initial appearance before the ICC via video link on March 14, 2025, from a detention center, where he confirmed his identity and was informed of the charges against him.

The confirmation of charges hearing—where the court will decide whether the case should go to trial—is scheduled for September 23, 2025, at the ICC headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands.