Justice for Ukraine: From Evidence to Redress

On 23 October 2026, the Dublin European Law Institute at Dublin City University will host a high-level event on Justice for Ukraine: From Evidence to Redress at FTG11, the Polaris Building, DCU from 9:00am to 12:45pm, in partnership with the Harvard Law School International Human Rights Clinic. The event is an official associated event of Ireland’s 2026 Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Registration is open
Download the programme

As Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine approaches the five-year mark, the conference tackles the big questions arising for the international community regarding state responses, accountability and reparations for the most serious international crimes. Erik Møse, Chairperson of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, who formerly served as judge of the European Court of Human Rights, President of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), and judge of the Supreme Court of Norway, will deliver a keynote address focussed on the work of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine.

A first panel discussion will consider the importance of effective state responses to the act of aggression and mounting evidence of genocidal intent along with a panoply of other international crimes. Panellists include Prof Susan Farbstein, Director of the International Human Rights Clinic and Clinical Professor at Harvard Law School, Dr Anastasiya Donets, Head of Legal Team, Eastern Europe and South Caucasus Programme at International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR) and Dr Andrew Forde, Deputy Director of the Dublin European Law Institute,

Following that, a second panel will look ahead, and specifically focus on the challenges associated with operationalising a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression. Amongst the speakers are Jörg Polakiewicz, former Director of Legal Advice and Public International Law (Legal Adviser) of the Council of Europe, Aonghus Kelly, International Human Rights Lawyer / former Head of International Crimes Unit at EU Advisory Mission Ukraine (EUAM), Dr Krešimir Kamber, Advisor to the Secretary General of the Council of Europe (CoE) and Dr Tanya Lokot, Associate Professor in Digital Media and Society, DCU.

Programme:

09:00 – Registration / Tea and Coffee

09:30 – Welcome – Dr Gëzim Visoka, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences, DCU

09:35 – Introduction to the Keynote – Prof Federico Fabbrini, Founding Director of the Dublin European Law Institute & DCU Brexit Institute, Full Professor of European Law, DCU

09:40 – Keynote Speech – Erik Møse, Chairperson of the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, former European Court of Human Rights judge, former President of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and former judge of the Supreme Court of Norway

10:00 – Mounting Evidence of Genocidal Intent in Russia’s War of Aggression: How Should States Respond?

Chair: Dr Tanya Ní Mhuirthile, Head of the School of Law and Government, DCU

• Dr Anastasiya Donets, Head of Legal Team, Eastern Europe and South Caucasus Programme, International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR)
• Prof Susan Farbstein, Director of the International Human Rights Clinic and Clinical Professor at Harvard Law School
• Dr Andrew Forde, Deputy Director of the Dublin European Law Institute, Assistant Professor of European Human Rights Law, DCU

11:00 – Coffee Break

11:30 – The Path Forward: The Challenge of Operationalising the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression

Chair: Prof Susan Farbstein, Director of the International Human Rights Clinic and Clinical Professor at Harvard Law School

• Prof Jörg Polakiewicz, former Director of Legal Advice and Public International Law (Legal Adviser) of the Council of Europe
• Aonghus Kelly, International Human Rights Lawyer / former Head of International Crimes Unit at EU Advisory Mission Ukraine (EUAM)
• Dr Krešimir Kamber, Advisor to the Secretary General of the Council of Europe (CoE)
• Dr Tanya Lokot, Associate Professor in Digital Media and Society, DCU

12:45 – Close & Lunch