Like every concept, jurisdiction may have different meanings. The word comes from Latin roots: jus or juris means "law," and dicere means "to say" or "to read." Therefore, "jurisdiction" can be understood to mean; "to say the law" and, as a derivative, "the power to say the law." Presently, jurisdiction is understood as the legislative, adjudicative, and executive power that provides, respectively, the competence to prescribe, adjudicate, or execute the law. In particular, it refers to the territorial competence of courts. Jurisdiction in criminal matters may be considered either as substantial or procedural law.

Prescriptive jurisdiction basically depends upon the enactment of laws by individual states, or by the state's adoption of international conventions. In the case of genocide, most states have become parties to the 1948 Genocide Convention, and the majority of states have incorporated the...