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How should international criminal tribunals react if member states refuse to cooperate and if, therefore, those wanted by international arrest warrants remain in their exalted position in the eyes of the world? The majority of tribunals accept this situation and prefer to concentrate their resources on other proceedings. Some tribunals, on the other hand, choose a different path and allow proceedings in absentia. Based on a legal comparison of different national jurisdictions, this work uses an empirical approach to examine the extent to which international criminal tribunals have conducted such proceedings in the absence of the accused. On this basis, the work scrutinises the legality of such proceedings in accordance with human rights. Subsequently, criminal theories are used to determine the reason and the limitations of the general principle that the accused is supposed to be in court during his or her trial.