The Presidency of the International Criminal Court constituted Trial Chamber III on 24 April 2026 to conduct the trial in the case of The Prosecutor v. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, the Court announced in a press release dated 29 April 2026.

Trial Chamber III consists of Presiding Judge Joanna Korner, Judge Keebong Paek and Judge Nicolas Guillou. The Chamber takes charge of the case days after Pre-Trial Chamber I unanimously confirmed all charges against the former Philippine president and committed him to trial.

Under the ICC's decision, Trial Chamber III "will be in charge of the conduct of the trial in this case." Its mandate includes holding status conferences and conferring with the parties and participants to set the trial date and adopt procedures "necessary to facilitate the fair and expeditious conduct of the proceedings."

The Presidency issued two decisions on 24 April 2026: a decision constituting Trial Chamber III and referring the case to it, and a decision notifying the election of the Presiding Judge.

Case background

The case against Mr Duterte moves forward rapidly by ICC standards. Pre-Trial Chamber I issued a warrant of arrest under seal on 7 March 2025 following a request by the Office of the Prosecutor. The warrant was reclassified as public on 11 March 2025. Philippine authorities surrendered Mr Duterte to the ICC on 12 March 2025, and he made his initial appearance two days later, on 14 March 2025.

The confirmation of charges hearing ran from 23 to 27 February 2026 before Pre-Trial Chamber I, composed of Presiding Judge Iulia Antoanella Motoc and Judges Reine Adélaïde Sophie Alapini-Gansou and María del Socorro Flores Liera. The Prosecution, the Defence and the Common Legal Representatives of the Victims all presented statements and submissions.

The hearing proceeded in the suspect's absence after the Chamber granted Mr Duterte's request to waive his right to attend.

On 23 April 2026, Pre-Trial Chamber I unanimously confirmed all three counts of crimes against humanity brought by the Prosecution and committed Mr Duterte to trial before a Trial Chamber. The Presidency's constitution of Trial Chamber III followed one day later.

What this means for practitioners

The case now transitions from the pre-trial to the trial phase, with case management authority shifting from Pre-Trial Chamber I to the newly seated bench. Parties and participants should expect the Chamber to convene status conferences in the coming months to fix a trial calendar and establish procedural ground rules. Defence counsel, prosecutors and victims' representatives will engage directly with Judges Korner, Paek and Guillou on disclosure, evidence and witness scheduling issues. Practitioners tracking the case should follow filings in the ICC-01/21 court record, where the constituting decisions and subsequent trial-phase orders are published.