International Criminal and Humanitarian Law Clinic

What International Criminal and Humanitarian Law Clinic does

The International Criminal and Humanitarian Law Clinic (CDIPH — Clinique de droit international pénal et humanitaire) is an academic legal clinic embedded within the Faculty of Law at Université Laval in Québec City, Canada. Founded in 2008 by Prof. Fannie Lafontaine, it operates as a non-commercial university program rather than an independent legal entity. The clinic provides Université Laval law students with hands-on practical experience on real international criminal and humanitarian law cases under faculty supervision, while simultaneously delivering legal research, expert testimony, amicus brief support, and case consultation to a network of professional partners — including Avocats sans frontières Canada, the Ligue des droits et libertés, and the Association des femmes autochtones du Canada.\n\nThe clinic's core offerings include clinical courses and internship programs for students, the SAR-UL specialized research program, a 15+ year research portfolio supporting international criminal justice, and the francophone blog Quid Justitiae, which functions as both an informational medium and a doctrinal source. Its geographic operating scope is primarily Québec, though its partnerships and tribunal participation have international reach (e.g., the Permanent Peoples' Tribunal, UN-affiliated work). The clinic leverages the Canada Research Chair on International Criminal Justice and Fundamental Rights (held by Prof. Lafontaine from 2013–2023) and the Canadian Partnership for International Justice (launched 2016) as institutional anchors.\n\nCDIPH is funded through university support and partner collaborations, with services provided free of charge to both student participants and professional partners. It generates no commercial revenue, has no employees in a traditional corporate sense beyond its 9-person academic team, and has no disclosed funding rounds or external investment. Its value proposition rests on Prof. Lafontaine's personal expertise and global network, accumulated reputational capital (including the 2023 Governor General's Innovation Award), and structural integration within Université Laval's academic framework.

Name

International Criminal and Humanitarian Law Clinic

Legal name

Clinique de droit international pénal et humanitaire (CDIPH)

Website

https://cdiph.ulaval.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The International Criminal and Humanitarian Law Clinic (CDIPH) is a non-commercial academic legal clinic at Université Laval in Québec, Canada, founded in 2008, that provides law students with practical casework experience in international criminal and humanitarian law while delivering pro bono legal research and expert support to civil society partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Québec

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

CDIPH is a university legal clinic at Université Laval that delivers supervised clinical courses and internship programs in which law students work on real international criminal and humanitarian law cases provided by professional partners. It also conducts multi-year research projects (including the SAR-UL program) supporting international criminal justice and human rights, and disseminates analysis through the Francophone doctrinal blog Quid Justitiae. Services are provided free of charge to partners and students, with funding through institutional and partner support.

Product overview

The International Criminal and Humanitarian Law Clinic (CDIPH) is a university clinic at Université Laval offering a portfolio of educational programs and knowledge dissemination services focused on international criminal law and humanitarian law. The core offering consists of clinical courses providing practical casework experience for law students, supplemented by an academic blog (Quid Justitiae) that publishes analysis and commentary on international justice topics. The clinic also operates research programs including the SAR-UL program and various collaborative projects, alongside an internship program. These services collectively support the clinic's mission of promoting international criminal justice and defending human rights.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Quid Justitiae: A francophone blog dedicated to international criminal law and international humanitarian law, serving as both an information medium and doctrinal source, covering conflict analysis, law evolution, and current issues.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Avocats sans frontières CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAvocats sans frontières Canada collaborates with CDIPH on joint panels, conferences, and legal projects related to international criminal justice and human rights defense. The organization serves as a key civil society partner providing practical perspectives on international justice matters.
• Clinique internationale de défense des droits humains de l'UQÀM (CIDDHU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCDIPH co-organizes events and panels with CIDDHU, including participation in the joint colloquium on legal clinics addressing international human rights law. The two clinics collaborate on shared objectives in international justice.
• Ligue des droits et libertésminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipates as a civil society partner in joint events and panels organized with CDIPH, bringing perspectives on human rights protection in Quebec and Canada.
• Société québécoise de droit international (SQDI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCDIPH actively participates in SQDI events, including the annual Katia-Boustany Conference. Prof. Fannie Lafontaine serves as a featured speaker, contributing to the advancement of international law scholarship in Quebec.
• Université Laval Faculty of LawcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe clinic operates within and is supported by Université Laval's Faculty of Law, providing institutional framework, faculty supervision, and academic credibility for student involvement and research activities.
• Quebec Law Faculty Clinics (UQAM, Université de Montréal, UQO, Université de Sherbrooke)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCDIPH co-organizes the biennial colloquium on university legal clinics with other Quebec law faculty clinics, addressing themes of normalization, subversion, and transformation in legal education and human rights law.
• Association des femmes autochtones du CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProf. Lafontaine collaborated with the association to create an illustrated book 'Génocide au Canada: une explication juridique' and developed educational materials on colonial genocide in Canada.

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Clinique internationale de défense des droits humains de l'UQAM (CIDDHU): Sister international human-rights legal clinic at UQAM in Montreal. Co-organizes events and panels with CDIPH on international human-rights law and is explicitly cited as a core strategic partner.
• UC Berkeley International Human Rights Law Clinic: Berkeley Law clinic where students work on international human-rights cases and advocacy. Mirrors CDIPH's combination of student training, real-casework, and academic publication.
• NYU Center for Human Rights and Global Justice: University-based clinic and research center combining legal scholarship, advocacy, and student casework in international human rights, international criminal law, and global justice — closely comparable mission and academic-clinic delivery model.
• Harvard Human Rights Clinic: University-based legal clinic providing students with practical human-rights casework, advocacy, and research — same academic-clinic model and international human-rights mandate as CDIPH.

Emerging players

• Wayamo Foundation: Capacity-building organization focused on international criminal justice in Africa and globally. Comparable thematic focus on international criminal justice, though delivered via training and convening rather than an academic clinic.
• European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR): Independent legal-activism organization using strategic litigation to advance international human rights and criminal law — overlaps with CDIPH's international-justice and accountability focus.

Others

• Avocats sans frontières Canada: Canadian NGO working on international justice and human rights defense. A core strategic partner of CDIPH and an adjacent mission-aligned organization in the same international-justice ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• International Commission of Jurists: Long-established global organization of jurists advancing the rule of law and human rights. Operates at far greater scale than CDIPH across a broader portfolio but shares the international-law and human-rights mission.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CDIPH_ChaireJIP
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/CDIPH
• Facebookfacebook.com/CDIPH
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cdiph

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about International Criminal and Humanitarian Law Clinic