SUSANA SÁCOUTO 4801 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20016 Tel. (202) 274-4184 e-mail: ssacouto@wcl.american.edu TEACHING EXPERIENCE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF LAW (WCL) Washington, DC 2004-present Professorial Lecturer-in-Residence (previously Adjunct Professor). Teach upper-level seminars on advanced topics in international criminal law, international criminal courts, international legal responses to women affected by conflict, and gender, cultural difference and human rights law. Summer 2007-present Director, Summer Law Program in The Hague. Establish, administer and implement summer study abroad program in The Hague in collaboration with the Asser Institute (Dutch institute of international law). Develop syllabus and reading materials, and serve as WCL faculty, for course on international criminal law. Summer 2005, Summer 2006 Faculty, Academy on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law. Co-taught course on international justice for human rights violations. OTHER EXPERIENCE WAR CRIMES RESEARCH OFFICE (WCRO), AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF LAW Washington, DC March 2003-present Director (previously Assistant Director). Provide legal research and technical assistance in the areas of international criminal and humanitarian law to international/ized criminal courts and tribunals. Undertake assessment missions to the various tribunals to clarify scope of projects. Guide and supervise all stages of research and writing, instructing students and other researchers in relevant law. Review and finalize all research products. Conduct training seminars for judges, prosecutors, and defense counsel of hybrid criminal courts and tribunals. Provide technical assistance to emerging international criminal justice mechanisms, such as the tribunal designed to try Khmer Rouge-era crimes in Cambodia. Select and coach teams of students participating in international criminal and humanitarian law competitions. Manage the immediate and long-term administrative and planning needs of the WCRO, including supervising WCRO staff and consultants, seeking funding sources, and overseeing WCRO and grant project budgets to ensure full compliance with university and sponsor guidelines. Present at public engagements and conferences on issues of international criminal and humanitarian law. Respond to inquiries from the media on international legal issues related to the work of the WCRO, and organize speaker series on pertinent topics. WOMEN EMPOWERED AGAINST VIOLENCE, INC. (WEAVE) Washington, DC September 1998 February 2003 Director of Legal Services (previously National Association for Public Interest Law Fellow/Staff Attorney). In addition to representing survivors of domestic violence in matters related to domestic violence including civil protection orders, divorce, custody, child support, criminal contempt, immigration and asylum proceedings supervised and evaluated members of the legal team, administered legal intern program and managed pro bono program, including training, mentoring and supervising of pro bono attorneys in representation of clients in matters related to domestic violence. Conducted weekly intake and monthly strategy meetings with legal staff. Developed systems for effective collaboration between legal, counseling and client services teams. Advocated for protection and extension of clients legal rights through legislative advocacy, public outreach, and the media. Assisted with fundraising efforts. INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL FOR THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA (ICTY) The Hague, Netherlands Spring 1998 Law Clerk, Office of the Prosecutor. Assisted legal advisor for gender-based crimes with prosecutions involving sexual violence. Composed comparative law memorandum on the definition of serious bodily harm for brief submitted in trial of first person accused of genocide for crimes involving sexual violence. Drafted closing trial brief in first case involving sexual violence as a violation of the laws of war. Redacted trial witness statements for disclosure to defense. Composed comprehensive digest of several ICTY precedent-setting cases.
Page 2 ARNOLD & PORTER Washington, DC Summer 1997 Summer Associate. Composed memoranda analyzing international law of expropriation, causes of action against potential copyright infringers, and enforcement of judgments against foreign sovereign. Drafted victim assistance language for international treaty banning landmines. Wrote motion to reopen in asylum case. Performed due diligence in fraud case against foreign sovereign. Received offer of full-time employment upon graduation. CENTER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS LEGAL ACTION Guatemala City, Guatemala Winter 1996-1997 Legal Intern. Drafted report intended for Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on human rights abuses against women in the maquila industry. Composed brief submitted to Constitutional Court on impact of Guatemalan amnesty law on Guatemala s international human rights obligations. UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT (S.D.N.Y.) New York, NY Summer 1996 Judicial Intern, Honorable Mary Johnson Lowe. Researched and drafted opinions analyzing: criminal law issues raised in habeas corpus petition, damages in civil rights suit, and questions of civil procedure, including motions for sanctions and reargument in contract action and discovery motion in constitutional case. FLORENCE IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE RIGHTS PROJECT Florence, AZ October 1994 - July 1995 Legal Assistant and Accredited Representative. Represented detainees in hearings before Immigration Judges. Drafted applications and supporting documentation for clients seeking political asylum and relief from deportation. Prepared witnesses for testimony. Wrote affidavits, motions, and appellate briefs. CAMBRIDGE AND SOMERVILLE LEGAL SERVICES, WOMEN S REFUGEE PROGRAM Cambridge, MA September 1993 - May 1994 Student Advocate. Evaluated cases of persons seeking relief from deportation. Interviewed clients and drafted political asylum applications. Found experts for case. Obtained care for clients suffering from PTSD. REEBOK HUMAN RIGHTS AWARD PROGRAM Medford, MA Summer 1994 Evaluator. Researched work of Latin Americans and Europeans nominated for Reebok international human rights award. Prepared summaries of top candidates and made recommendations for final awards. COALITION FOR IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE RIGHTS AND SERVICES San Francisco, CA Summer 1993 Law and Policy Intern. Wrote report on asylum for women fleeing gender-based persecution. Drafted letters to national, state and local representatives on effect of proposed legislation on immigrants and asylum applicants. HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH, WOMEN'S RIGHTS PROJECT Washington, DC Summer 1992 Intern. Researched restrictions on freedom of speech and association in Latin America. Assisted in editing, translating and updating case research for published report on violence against women in Brazil. Attended congressional hearings. THE FUNDING CENTER Alexandria, VA September 1990 - June 1992 Development Associate. Investigated prospective sources of funding and assisted in drafting feasibility studies and proposals for non-profits. Helped establish tax-exempt foundation to support higher education in Dominican Republic.
EDUCATION Page 3 GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY LAW CENTER AND NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TRIAL ADVOCACY Summer 1999 Participated in nine-day intensive trial advocacy training program. NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW (NUSL), Boston, MA J.D., May 1998 Inter-American Human Rights Moot Court Competition: Best English Memorial Published in NUSL s only law journal at the time: Rape in Wartime: Redress in United States Courts Under the Alien Tort Claims Act, 3 NU FORUM: A COOPERATIVE L. J. OF NORTHEASTERN U. SCH. L. 123 (Spring 1998). Professor Lucy Williams, Research Assistant. For journal articles in areas of immigration and welfare law. Activities: Domestic Violence Clinic; International Law Society, Co-Chair; Immigration Task Force, Member; Women's Law Caucus, Member FLETCHER SCHOOL OF LAW AND DIPLOMACY, TUFTS UNIVERSITY, Medford, MA M.A.L.D, May 1994 Areas of study: International Litigation; International Human Rights Law Master's Thesis: A Comparative Analysis of Asylum Seeking in the United States and the European Union Honors and Activities: Joan Gillespie Fellowship and C.V. Starr Scholarship recipient; Women's Forum, Co-Chair HARVARD UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL, Cambridge, MA (cross-registered from Fletcher School) Course work: Immigration Law; Asylum and Refugee Law, 1993-94; Immigration Clinic Program, 1993-94 BROWN UNIVERSITY, Providence, RI B.A. with Honors, May 1990 Major: International Relations; Honors Thesis: Portuguese Immigration to the United States Activities: Brown Foreign Relations Journal, Staff Member; Resident Counselor SELECT PUBLICATIONS, Victim Participation at the International Criminal Court and the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia: A Feminist Project?, 18 MICH. J. GENDER & L. (forthcoming Jan. 2012)., Introduction to Amicus Brief on The Practice of Cumulative Charging before International Criminal Bodies, submitted by the War Crimes Research Office to the Appeals Chamber of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, 22 CRIM. L. FORUM (online Jun. 2011; hardcopy Sept. 2011)., Introduction to Panel on Gender Crimes at the International Level, in Proceedings of the Third International Humanitarian Law Dialogs, 42 STUDIES IN INT L LEGAL POL Y 191 (Elizabeth Andersen & David Crane eds., 2010)., Introductory Note for The International Criminal Court: Appeal of the Prosecutor Against the Decision on the Prosecution s Application for a Warrant of Arrest against Omar Hassan Ahmad Al Bashir, 49 INT L LEGAL MATERIALS 922 (2010). and Katherine Cleary, The Katanga Complementarity Decisions: Sound Law but Flawed Policy, 23 LEIDEN J. OF INT L L. 363 (June 2010). and Katherine Cleary, The Women s Protocol to the African Charter and Sexual Violence in the Context of Armed Conflict or Other Mass Atrocity, 16 WASH. & LEE J. OF CIV. RTS & SOC. JUST. 173 (Fall 2009, released Nov. 2010). and Katherine Cleary, The Confirmation of Charges Process at the International Criminal Court, in PROTECCIÓN INTERNACIONAL DE DERECHOS HUMANOS Y ESTADO DE DERECHO 331-380 (Joaquín González Ibáñez, ed., 2009).
and Katherine A. Cleary, The Importance of Effective Investigation of Sexual Violence and Gender-Based Crimes at the International Criminal Court,17 AM. U. J. OF GENDER, SOC. POL Y & L. 337 (2009). and Katherine A. Cleary, Introductory Note to the International Tribunal for Rwanda: Appeals Judgment in the Case of Prosecutor v. Tharcisse Muvunyi, 47 INT L LEGAL MATERIALS 875 (2008). and Katherine A. Cleary, The Gravity Threshold of the International Criminal Court, 23 AM. U. INT L L. REV. 807 (2008). and Katherine A. Cleary, Victims Participation in the Investigations of the International Criminal Court, 17 TRANSNAT L L. & CONTEMP. PROBS. 73 (Winter 2008)., Reflections on the Judgment of the International Court of Justice in Bosnia s Genocide Case against Serbia and Montenegro, 15 HUM. RTS. BRIEF 2 (Fall 2007)., Advances and Missed Opportunities in the International Prosecution of Gender-Based Crimes, 15 MICH. STATE J. INT L L. 137 (2007)., Advances and Missed Opportunities in the International Prosecution Of Gender-Based Crimes,10 GONZ. J. INT L L. 49 (2006)., The Role of Victims in Bringing former Khmer Rouge Leaders to Justice in Cambodia, in JUSTICE INITIATIVES: THE EXTRAORDINARY CHAMBERS (Open Society Justice Initiatives, Spring 2006). Maria Allison and Leslie Wilson ( ed.), News from the International Criminal Tribunals: Musema v. Prosecutor and Prosecutor v. Kayishema and Ruzindana, 10 HUM. RTS. BRIEF 36 (Spring 2003). Marcellene Hearn,, Sharon Stapel and Wendy Vaughn, Implementing the Family Violence Option in New York and Washington, D.C., FELLOWS ON THE FRONT, Jun. 2000, at 3., Rape in Wartime: Redress in United States Courts Under the Alien Tort Claims Act, 3 NU FORUM: A COOPERATIVE L. J. OF NORTHEASTERN U. SCH. L. 123 (Spring 1998). SELECT PRESENTATIONS/SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS GROUP OF FRIENDS OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT, THE HAGUE June 2011 Delivered presentation on Expediting Proceedings: Examining the Jurisprudence and the Practice of the International Criminal Court. AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON SEMESTER PROGRAM March 2011 Peace & Conflict Resolution Program. Preseneted on the International Criminal Tribunal in Rwanda CENTER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND HUMANITARIAN LAW, AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF LAW March 2011 Experts Roundtable on International Humanitarian Law: Emerging Issues in the Law of Armed Conflict. INSTITUTE OF ADVANCED LEGAL STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF LONDON March 2011 2d Biennial War Crimes Conference: Justice? Whose Justice? Punishment, Mediation or Reconciliation? Presented on Victim Participation at the International Criminal Court and the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia. AMERICAN UNIVERSITY INTERNATIONAL LAW REVIEW Feb. 2011 International Law Bares Its Teeth: How States and International Organizations Enforce Customary Norms and Treaty Obligations. Moderated panel entitled From Investigations to Sentencing: State Cooperation with the ICC in Enforcing International Criminal Law. CAMBODIAN DEFENDERS PROJECT, PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA Nov. 2010 International Gender Justice Conference. Presented on Lessons Learned from the ICC. Page 4
NEW ENGLAND SCHOOL OF LAW C ENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL LAW & POLICY October 2010 Speaker Series. Presented on Victim Participation before International and Hybrid Criminal Tribunals. THE XVIIITH INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF COMPARATIVE LAW July 2010 Plenary: The Prohibition Against Torture and Cultural Relativism. Delivered presentation on different approaches to evaluating allegations of torture in the jurisprudence of the ad hoc international tribunals. Remarks summarized at http://intlawgrrls.blogspot.com/2010/08/torture-ban-cultural-relativism.html. REVIEW CONFERENCE OF ROME STATUTE ESTABLISHING INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT, KAMPALA, UGANDA June 2010 Launch of WCRO Report on The Case-Based Reparations Scheme of the International Criminal Court. Discussed key recommendations from the Report. WOMEN S INITIATIVES FOR GENDER JUSTICE AND NOBEL WOMEN S INITIATIVE April 2010 International Gender Justice Dialogue. Panelist on panel entitled: Prosecutions and Jurisprudence What have we achieved, what remains to be done? THE FRIENDS OF THE ICC GROUP IN THE HAGUE AND THE WCRO November 2009 Launch of WCRO Report on Defining the Case Against an Accused Before the International Criminal Court: Whose Responsibility Is It? Discussed key recommendations from the Report. THE CHAUTAUQUA INSTITUTION, NY September 2009 Third Annual International Humanitarian Law Dialogs. Moderated roundtable discussion with prosecutors from international and hybrid criminal tribunals on Gender Crimes at the International Level. WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW April 2009 Symposium on The Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Women: Opportunities and Challenges for Reproductive and Sexual Health. Delivered a presentation on Sexual Violence in Conflict. FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY S THE CENTER FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF HUMAN RIGHTS January 2009 Symposium on International Criminal Tribunals: Problems and Prospects. Presented paper on Victim Participation at the Case Stage of Proceedings before the International Criminal Court. OFFICE OF THE PROSECUTOR, INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT December 2008 Expert Meeting on The Investigation and Prosecution of Gender-Based Crimes,The Hague,The Netherlands. Presented on The Relationship between Widespread and Systematic Gender-Based Crimes and Genocide. THE INTERNATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION, THE FRIENDS OF THE ICC GROUP IN THE HAGUE AND THE WCRO October 2008 Launch of WCRO Report on The Confirmation of Charges Process at the International Criminal Court. Discussed key recommendations from the Report. AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF LAW October 2008 Conference on Prosecuting Sexual and Gender-Based Crimes before International/ized Criminal Courts, cosponsored by the WCRO and the Women in International Law Program. Presented opening remarks and delivered a presentation as part of a panel on The Devil is in the Details: Policy and Practice. THE OPEN SOCIETY JUSTICE INITIATIVE AND THE WCRO December 2007 Launch of WCRO Report on Victim Participation before the International Criminal Court. Discussed key recommendations from the Report. INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GENOCIDE SCHOLARS SEVENTH BIENNIAL MEETING July 2007 Panel on Genocide and International Law. Presented paper on the Significance, legal consequences and questions raised by the recent ICJ decision in the Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro case. GROTIUS SUMMER SCHOOL ON INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL LAW June 2007 Hosted by the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies and the T.M.C. Asser Institute in The Hague, Netherlands. Delivered a presentation on war crimes and crimes against humanity. UNIVERSITY OF IOWA COLLEGE OF LAW February 2007 War Crimes Symposium organized by Transnational Law and Contemporary Problems journal. Delivered a presentation on legal issues raised by early decisions of the International Criminal Court. EXTRAORDINARY CHAMBERS IN THE COURTS OF CAMBODIA (ECCC) October 2006 Training Seminar for the Offices of the Co-Prosecutors and Co-Investigating Judges. Presented on the role of victims before the ECCC and the prosecution of two new crimes unique to the ECCC. Page 5
Page 6 SOUTHEASTERN ASSOCIATION OF LAW SCHOOLS ANNUAL MEETING July 2006 Panel on International Law. Presented on whether international or internationalized criminal tribunals amount to an imposition of Western standards on the countries where atrocities have occurred. MAINSTREAM MEDIA PROJECT, NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO March 2006 A World of Possibilities. Interviewed for program on Bringing Tyrants to Justice: War Crimes on Trial. AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF LAW March 2006 Seminar on the UN and Regional Systems Legal Framework on Torture. Delivered a presentation on torture as a violation of international humanitarian law and international criminal law. UNIVERSITY OF OSLO, INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC AND INTERNATIONAL LAW March 2006 Conference on the Legal and Moral Responsibility in War. Spoke on proving genocidal intent. NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO February 2006 Public Interest Show with Kojo Nnamdi. Joined two other guests in a live discussion of the legal standards and consequences of disruptive courtroom behavior by defendants being tried by international criminal tribunals. UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON SCHOOL OF LAW February 2006 Amnesty International USA s 2006 Lawyers Conference. Delivered a presentation on the international prosecution of gender-based crimes. GOVERNMENT OF EAST TIMOR & UNITED NATIONS MISSION IN SUPPORT OF EAST TIMOR April 2005 Symposium on UN Peacekeeping Operations in Post-Conflict Timor-Lest: Accomplishments and Lessons Learned, held in Dili, East Timor. Presented on on the Serious Crimes Process in East Timor. UNITED STATES SENATE May 2004 Panel convened by Citizens for Global Solutions entitled "War Crimes in Uganda: Seeking Peace through Accountability." Presented on the subject of accountability for war crimes arising out of the conflict in Uganda. SPECIAL PANELS FOR SERIOUS CRIMES IN EAST TIMOR/TIMOR LESTE September 2003 Training Seminars on International Criminal and Humanitarian Law. Conducted training seminars in international criminal and humanitarian law for staff of the Special Panels. INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR GENOCIDE SCHOLARS CONFERENCE, IRELAND June 2003 Panel on Proving the Intent Element of Genocide in International Prosecutions. Presented paper on Pattern Evidence of Sexual Violence as Evidence of Genocidal Intent. AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF LAW March 2003 Seminar on International Law and Non-state Actors. Guest lectured on civil suits against non-state actors for violations of international law under the Alien Tort Claims Act. GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY LAW CENTER November 2002 and April 2003 Domestic Violence and the Law Seminar. Guest lectured on relief available for domestic violence survivors under immigration and asylum laws. SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA December 2001 Domestic Violence Training. Trained Superior Court judges in the Domestic Violence Unit on myths and facts about domestic violence and relief available under immigration laws. WASHINGTON, DC, METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT April 2001 Police Academy Training on Domestic Violence. Spoke on legal remedies available to survivors of domestic violence. AMERICAN UNIVERSITY WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF LAW November 2000 Battered Women and the Law Seminar. Guest lectured on domestic violence as a violation of human rights.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CITY COUNCIL November 1999 Committee on Human Services. Hearing on Welfare Reform Oversight. Testified on language barriers faced by immigrants in accessing public benefits. Page 7 MEMBERSHIP IN PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS, HONORS AND PERSONAL Bar Membership: o Massachusetts Bar (1998) o District of Columbia Bar (1998) Professional Association Memberships: o American Society of International Law (ASIL), Member Women s International Law Interest Group, ASIL, Co-chair, 2006-2009 Awards and Honors Committee, Member, 2009-2010 o International Law Association (American Branch), Member o International Association of Genocide Scholars, Member o Immigration and Human Rights Committee, D.C. Bar International Law Section, Co-Chair, 1999-2002 Board Membership: o Women Empowered Against Violence, Inc., former Board Member Awards: o Recipient of The Women s Law Center of Maryland 22 nd Annual Dorothy Beatty Award for commitment to enforcing women s human rights, October 2007 o Recipient of District of Columbia Bar s Best Section Committee Award, 2001 Languages: Native Portuguese speaker; proficient Spanish; beginning French. Interests: Travel, Iberian cooking and world music.