Marina Aksenova

Marina Aksenova is a lawyer specialising in international criminal and comparative criminal law. Marina graduated with honors from the International University in Moscow. She holds an LLM in Public International Law from the University of Amsterdam and an MSc in Criminal Justice and Criminology from the University of Oxford. Marina defended her PhD entitled ‘Complicity in International Criminal Law’ in 2014 at the European University Institute, in Florence. Prior to joining the IE, Marina was as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Centre of Excellence for International Courts (iCourts), Faculty of Law, University of Copenhagen.

Marina has a broad range of research interests. She studies purposes of international criminal law, focusing in particular on the overarching symbolic objective of the discipline. She is also interested in the process of criminalization within the field of international criminal justice. In this regard, Marina looks closely at the offence of international terrorism. Marina also publishes in the fields of human rights law, public international law and transitional justice. Finally, Marina is developing a new field of academic study – aesthetics and international justice. She runs Art and International Justice Initiative with the aim of promoting creativity in the study of international law. More specifically, she is currently pursuing cutting-edge research at the intersection of citizenship studies, aesthetics and international law with the aim of establishing new ways of approaching familiar legal categories, such as ´citizenship´.

Academic Background

• PhD in Law, European University Institute (Florence, Italy), 2010 - 2014. Dissertation: “Complicity in International Criminal Law”. Awarded EUI annual Mauro Cappelletti Prize for the best thesis in comparative law.

• MSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Oxford (Oxford, UK), 2009 - 2010

• LLM in Public International Law, University of Amsterdam (Amsterdam, Netherlands), 2004 - 2005

• Bachelor in Law, International University (Moscow, Russia), 2000 - 2004

Professional Experience

• iCourts Centre for Excellence, Faculty of Law, University of Copenhagen, Postdoctoral fellow, Septiembre 2014 - Septiembre 2017

• Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (Phnom Penh, Cambodia), Researcher, Trial Chamber, June 2011 - September 2011

• White & Case, LLC (Moscow, Russia), Associate, Arbitration and Litigation Department, September 2007 - August 2009

• International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (The Hague, Netherlands), Legal Assistant, Defense, September 2005 - May 2007

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

• Aksenova, M. (2023) “Global Citizenship and the Right of Access to Justice: Adapting T.H. Marshall’s Ideas to the Interconnected World”, Humanity Journal, Vol 14(2)

• Aksenova, M. (2021). “Corporate Complicity in International Criminal Law: Potential Responsibility of European Arms Dealers for Crimes Committed in Yemen”. Washington International Law Journal, Vol. 30 (2)

• Aksenova, M., Bennoune K. (eds) (2020) “Art, Aesthetics, and International Courts: Introduction to a Symposium”, American Journal of International Law, AJIL Unbound Vol 114