Called 2011

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Introduction

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Dr Tomas Hamilton (‘Tom’) is a specialist in international criminal law with extensive experience of litigation before international tribunals and the conduct of human rights investigations. Since arriving at Guernica 37 he has focused on extradition work (with his supervisor Ania Grudzinska), international advisory work, sanctions and export controls, business and human rights, and crime.

 

Called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2011, Tom has spent over 13 years handling high-profile cases involving atrocity crimes and serious human rights violations. His expertise is particularly relevant for clients navigating complex international and cross-border issues. Tom excels in drafting precise, compelling arguments and is adept at managing the large volumes of evidence often associated with international cases.

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Expertise and Experience

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Before joining Guernica 37, Tom served as a Human Rights Officer for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). He played a key role in drafting the findings of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela (FFMV) presented to the Human Rights Council in 2023.

 

From 2016 to 2021, Tom worked for the UN’s Assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials (UNAKRT), on the Defence in the Case 004 investigations before the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC). He led the legal team that supported Counsel in the representation of a client facing charges of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.

 

Tom’s earlier work at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague from 2013 to 2016 saw him contribute to significant decisions in the Situations in the Ivory Coast, Libya, Darfur (Sudan), and Central African Republic. In the UK, Tom gained practical experience in business crime and serious prison offences while working at Bark & Co Solicitors.

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He also has a significant academic track record, having taught as Assistant Professor of International Criminal Law at the University of Amsterdam and published widely. His work focuses on corporate accountability and arms export regulation, particularly within the business and human rights sector, with a regional focus on Southeast Asia.

 

Tom actively engages in pro bono work and provides advisory services to organizations like Amnesty International, Global Witness, and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

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Education

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PhD in Law, King’s College London

LLM, University of Cambridge

Bar Vocational Course, College of Law, London

LLB, College of Law, London

BA (Hons), University of Oxford

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Memberships

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Bar Human Rights Committee of England and Wales (BHRC)

Defence Extradition Lawyers’ Association

The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn (since 2009)

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Appointments

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Guest Lecturer, Law Faculty, University of Cambridge

Visiting Researcher, Grotius Center for International Law         

Visiting Scholar, TMC Asser Institute, The Hague

Fellow, Centre for Rights and Justice, Chinese University of Hong Kong   

Research Fellow, Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Oxford

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Significant Awards

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Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Doctoral Scholarship

Major Bar Scholarship, Lincoln’s Inn

Hardwicke Award, Lincoln’s Inn

Oxford University Society Grant          

Royal Geographical Society, Research Award

Michael Aris Memorial Trust, Research Award

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Experience

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International Criminal Law

International Human Rights Law

International Humanitarian Law

Public International Law

Extradition

General Crime

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Languages

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English

Spanish

French

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Selected Publications

 

• Co-Editor, Business and Human Rights Journal (Cambridge University Press) Special Issue on Corporate Accountability and the Arms Trade, October 2024.

• The Arms Trade and International Criminal Law (Oxford University Press) monograph book (forthcoming 2024).

• Managing Editor, Rethinking Secondary Liability for International Crimes (SLIC*) (Oxford University Press) (forthcoming 2025).

• Principles of Reparations at the International Criminal Court: Assessing Alternative Approaches, UN Yearbook of International Law, with Sluiter, G. 15, Dec 2023.

• Invited speaker on the IBA War Crimes Committee for the International Bar Association (IBA) in Miami (November 2022).

• Corporate accountability and Iranian drones in the Ukraine war: Could sanctions lead to prosecutions for international crimes? 23 Nov 2022, EJIL: Talk!

• Why the ICC’s termination of proceedings against deceased Kenyan defendant Paul Gicheru should not be the end of the matter, Sluiter, G. K. & Hamilton, T. F. B., 17 Oct 2022, EJIL: Talk!

• Defending Ukraine with EU weapons, Hamilton, T., Sep 2022, European Law Open. 1, 3, Cambridge University Press

• Articulating Arms Control Law in the EU’s Lethal Military Assistance to Ukraine (Just Security blog)

• Corporate Accountability for Atrocity Crimes in Myanmar: Business Complicity in the Investigations of the UN Fact-Finding Mission, with Caon G., Vol 40 (2023)

• China Would Violate the Arms Trade Treaty If It Sends Weapons to Russia for Use in Ukraine: Part I (Opinio Juris)

• China Would Violate the Arms Trade Treaty if it Sends Weapons to Russia for Use in Ukraine: Part II (Opinio Juris)

• An arms trade case at the International Criminal Court: Would the Article 25(3)(c) ‘purpose’ requirement really matter? Hamilton, T. F. B., 23 Sep 2021, Rethinking SLIC.

• Arms Transfers under Article 25(3)(d)(ii) of the Rome Statute, in Jørgensen, N. H. B. (ed.), 1 Sep 2020, Cambridge University Press

• Uniting Against Impunity: Using the UN General Assembly as a Catalyst for Action at the ICC, Ramsden, M. P. & Hamilton, T. F. B., 11 Sep 2017, 66, 4, p. 893-921