Russell Benjamin Wallace Gumpert, known as Ben Gumpert, QC (born 27 February 1963) is a Crown Court Judge, (styled His Honour Judge Gumpert QC) and former barrister, specialising in international and domestic criminal law.[1] Gumpert was previously a Senior Trial Lawyer at the International Criminal Court (ICC), leading the prosecution team in the case against Dominic Ongwen[2] In 2012 Gumpert prosecuted to conviction the first 'modern slavery' case (R v Connors and ors.) in the UK[3]
Career as a barrister
editGumpert was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 1987. He is a member of Inner Temple. Until 1998 he was a member of barristers’ chambers at 4 King's Bench Walk, and thereafter at 36 Bedford Row. He joined the Crown Prosecution Service in 2010 as a Principle Crown Advocate before moving to the ICC in 2013 as a Senior Trial Lawyer. He was appointed Queen's Counsel in 2014[4] Between 2003 and 2008 at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, he defended Justin Mugenzi, one of the Rwandan government ministers who were ultimately acquitted of planning and organising genocide in Rwanda in 1994[5]
International Criminal Court
editGumpert led the prosecution team in the case of Uhuru Kenyatta at the ICC.[6] The case of Dominic Ongwen, in which Gumpert led the prosecution team at the ICC, is notable for its emphasis on sexual and gender based crimes. Nineteen of the 70 confirmed charges allege crimes of this nature.[7] The case has also been said to represent “a milestone precedent for future cases, not just in terms of circumventing situations of witness interference, but more importantly, in safeguarding vulnerable victims and witnesses, and preserving their evidence for any eventual trial.[8] At the ICC, Gumpert takes the lead within the Prosecution Division on advocacy training[9] He has written and spoken about potential reforms to improve the efficiency of proceedings in international courts and tribunals[10]
Gumpert was reportedly on the list of candidates to be interviewed for the post of ICC Prosecutor.[11] However he withdrew his candidacy upon being appointed a Circuit Judge on 25 May 2020 [12]
References
edit- ^ "Download - 36 Bedford Row". Yumpu.com. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ "Ongwen trial opens at International Criminal Court". Icc-cpi.int. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ "Workers 'were driven like slaves'". BBC News. 10 April 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ "List of Queen's Counsel appointed February 2014" (PDF). Assets.publishing.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "THE PROSECUTOR v. Casimir BIZIMUNGU, Justin MUGENZI, Jérôme-Clément BICAMUMPAKA, Prosper MUGIRANEZA : Case No. ICTR-99-50-T" (PDF). Unictr.irmct.org. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "Kenya's Kenyatta becomes first president to appear at global court". Reuters. 8 October 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ "Decision on the confirmation of charges against Dominic Ongwen". www.icc-cpi.int. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ Bradfield, Paul (11 May 2019). "Preserving Vulnerable Evidence at the International Criminal Court – the Article 56 Milestone in Ongwen". International Criminal Law Review. 19 (3): 373–411. doi:10.1163/15718123-01903001. ISSN 1571-8123.
- ^ "The Hague 2019". ICCA. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ Gumpert, Benjamin; Nuzban, Yulia (15 November 2019). "Part I: What can be done about the length of proceedings at the ICC?". EJIL: Talk!. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ Bradfield, Paul (5 March 2020). "In addition, the word is that Ben Gumpert QC is also on the short list. Lead Counsel for the OTP on the superbly-ran Ongwen trial, he would be an excellent choice. @ijmonitor". @BradfieldPaul. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ "Circuit Judge Appointment: Gumpert QC". Archived from the original on 21 May 2020.