Fletcher: Grammar of Criminal Law

George P. Fletcher (Columbia - Law) has published The Grammar of Criminal Law: American, Comparative, and International, Volume One: Foundations (Oxford Univ. Press 2007). Here's the abstract:

The Grammar of Criminal Law is a 3-volume work that addresses the field of international and comparative criminal law, with its primary focus on the issues of international concern, ranging from genocide, to domestic efforts to combat terrorism, to torture, and to other international crimes. The first volume is devoted to foundational issues. The Grammar of Criminal Law is unique in its systematic emphasis on the relationship between language and legal theory; there is no comparable comparative study of legal language.

Wuerth: International Law and Constitutional Interpretation

My colleague Ingrid B. Wuerth (Cincinnati - Law; Vanderbilt - Law, visiting) has posted her excellent article International Law and Constitutional Interpretation: The Commander-in-Chief Clause Reconsidered (Mich. L. Rev., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

The Commander-in-Chief Clause is a difficult, under-explored area of constitutional interpretation. It is also an area in which international law is often mentioned, but not fully defended, as a possible method of interpreting the Constitution. This article analyzes why the Commander-in-Chief Clause is hard, and argues that international law helps resolve some of the difficulties that the Clause presents. Because of problems with originalist analysis, lack of judicial competence in military matters, and changes over time, the Court has relied on heavily on "second order" interpretive norms like congressional authorization and executive branch in interpreting the war and foreign affairs powers of the President. International law to which the United States is a party functions itself as a second order interpretive norm, in many ways similar to other forms of congressional authorization or executive branch practice. But because it is mediated in unique ways – by other countries and within our own domestic political system – international law is an especially compelling way to resolve problems with judicial competence and changes over time. International law also makes a powerful contribution to an originalist understanding of the Commander-in-Chief Clause: careful consideration of eighteenth century war-related international law demonstrates that the Constitution vested control over these aspects of international law with Congress, not the President.

Treaty Transmittal: Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks

On May 3, 2007, the President transmitted to the Senate the Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks. The transmittal package is now available here (Treaty Doc. 110-2). A list of pending treaties before the Senate is available here. On what the treaty does, see this.

New Issue: International Legal Materials

The latest issue of International Legal Materials (Vol. 46, no. 2, March 2007) is out. Contents include:

• Second Summit of the International Conference on Great Lakes Region: Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region, with introductory note by Chaloka Beyani
• International Court of Justice: Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro, with introductory note by Antoine Ollivier
• International Court of Justice: Pulp Mills on the River Uruguay (Argentina v. Uruguay), with introductory note by Pieter H.F. Bekker
• International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes: World Duty Free v. Kenya, with introductory note by Michael M. Waibel
• Israel Supreme Court: Public Committee Against Torture v. Israel, with introductory note by Mark E. Wojcik
• Henry Hyde United States/India Peaceful Atomic Energy Cooperation Act of 2006, with introductory note by Daryl Kimball
• President George W. Bush Signing Statement to the Hyde India Peaceful Atomic Cooperation Act of 2006

Judgment: Ahmadou Sadio Diallo (Preliminary Objections)

Today, the International Court of Justice rendered its judgment on the respondent's preliminary objections in the case of Ahmadou Sadio Diallo (Republic of Guinea v. Democratic Republic of the Congo). Unanimously, the Court found the application admissible "in so far as it concerns protection of Mr. Diallo’s rights as an individual." By fourteen votes to one, the Court found the application admissible "in so far as it concerns protection of Mr. Diallo’s direct rights as associé in Africom-Zaire and Africontainers-Zaire." By fourteen votes to one, the court found the application inadmissible "in so far as it concerns protection of Mr. Diallo in respect of alleged violations of rights of Africom-Zaire and Africontainers-Zaire." The judgment is available here. A summary is available here. The ICJ press release is available here. Other documents, including the application and the written and oral proceedings to date, are available here.

Holtzmann & Kristjánsdóttir: International Mass Claims Processes

Howard M. Holtzmann & Edda Kristjánsdóttir have published International Mass Claims Processes: Legal and Practical Perspectives (Oxford Univ. Press 2007). Here's the abstract:

Mass Claims Processes have become increasingly important phenomena in international dispute resolution. This is the first book to provide comprehensive information for a systematic comparison and analysis of the legal issues and practical matters involved in their establishment and operation.This book considers eleven of the highest profile modern Mass Claims tribunals and commissions created to redress large-scale losses. These include Processes resolving claims arising from the Iranian Revolution, Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, the Holocaust, and conflicts in the Former Yugoslavia and between Eritrea and Ethiopia.The book identifies and focuses on forty-seven basic issues that experience shows typically arise with respect to international Mass Claims Processes, offering descriptions and commentary on the ways in which the various Processes have approached each issue.

New Issue: Human Rights Law Review

The latest issue of the Human Rights Law Review (Vol. 7. no. 2, 2007) is out. Contents include:

• Nigel S. Rodley & Basak Çali, Kosovo Revisited: Humanitarian Intervention on the Fault Lines of International Law
• Evadné Grant, Dignity and Equality
• Gauthier de Beco, National Human Rights Institutions in Europe
• United Nations and Regional Human Rights Systems: Recent Developments
• E.J. Flynn, The Security Council's Counter-Terrorism Committee and Human Rights
• Catherine Phuong, The Relationship Between the European Court of Human Rights and the Human Rights Committee: Has the ‘Same Matter’ Already Been ‘Examined’?
• Valerio Colandrea, On the Power of the European Court of Human Rights to Order Specific Non-monetary Measures: Some Remarks in Light of the Assanidze, Broniowski and Sejdovic Cases
• Sangeeta Shah, Seeking Remedies for Violations of International Humanitarian Law: Markovic v Italy
• Matthew Happold, Hamdan v Rumsfeld and the Law of War

Ulfstein: Making Treaties Work

Geir Ulfstein (Univ. Oslo - Law & Norwegian Centre for Human Rights), with Thilo Marauhn (Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen - Law) & Andreas Zimmermann (Christian-Albrechts Universität zu Kiel - Law), has published Making Treaties Work: Human Rights, Environment and Arms Control (Cambridge Univ. Press 2007). Here's the abstract:

There is an increasing focus on the need for national implementation of treaties. International law has traditionally left enforcement to the individual parties, but more and more treaties contain arrangements to induce States to comply with their commitments. Experts in this book examine three forms of such mechanisms: dispute settlement procedures in the form of international courts, non-compliance procedures of an administrative character, and enforcement of obligation by coercive means. Three fields are examined, namely human rights, international environmental law, and arms control and disarmament. These areas are in the forefront of the development of current international law and deal with multilateral, rather than purely bilateral issues. The three parts of the book on human rights, international environmental law and arms control contain a general introduction and case studies of the most relevant treaties in the field.

Simmons & Steinberg: International Law and International Relations

Beth A. Simmons (Harvard - Gov't) & Richard H. Steinberg (UCLA - Law) have published International Law and International Relations: An International Organization Reader (Cambridge Univ. Press 2007). Here's the abstract:

This volume is intended to help readers understand the relationship between international law and international relations (IL/IR). As a testament to this dynamic area of inquiry, new research on IL/IR is now being published in a growing list of traditional law reviews and disciplinary journals. The excerpted articles in this volume, all of which were first published in International Organization, represent some of the most important research since serious social science scholarship began in this area more than twenty years ago. They are important milestones toward making IL/IR a central concern of scholarly research in international affairs. The contributions cover some of the main topics of international affairs to provide readers with a range of theoretical perspectives, concepts, and heuristics that can be used to analyze the relationship between international law and international relations.

New Issue: Stanford Journal of International Law

The latest issue of the Stanford Journal of International Law (Vol. 43, no. 1, Winter 2007) is out. Contents include:

• David Cohen, "Hybrid" Justice in East Timor, Sierra Leone, and Cambodia: "Lessons Learned" and Prospects for the Future
• Robert D. Sloane, The Expressive Capacity of International Punishment: The Limits of the National Law Analogy and the Potential of International Criminal Law
• Mark Totten, Using Force First: Moral Tradition and the Case for Revision
• Joel P. Trachtman, The WTO Cathedral

New Issue: Leiden Journal of International Law

The latest issue of the Leiden Journal of International Law (Vol. 20, no. 2, June 2007) is out. Contents include:

• Carl Landauer, The Ambivalences of Power: Launching the American Journal of International Law in an Era of Empire and Globalization
• Amanda Alexander, The Genesis of the Civilian
• Shane Darcy, Imputed Criminal Liability and the Goals of International Justice
• Anna Riddell, Report on the Oral Proceedings in the Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro): Selected Procedural Aspects
• Emily Crawford, Unequal before the Law: The Case for the Elimination of the Distinction between International and Non-international Armed Conflicts
• Abdelrahman Afifi, On the Scope of Professional Secret and Confidentiality: The International Criminal Court Code of Professional Conduct for Counsel and the Lawyer's Dilemma
• Daniel H. Joyner, Non-proliferation Law and the United Nations System: Resolution 1540 and the Limits of the Power of the Security Council

Coleman: International Organisations and Peace Enforcement

Katharina P. Coleman (Univ. British Columbia - Pol. Sci.) has published International Organisations and Peace Enforcement: The Politics of International Legitimacy (Cambridge Univ. Press 2007). Here's the abstract:

What distinguishes a peace enforcement operation from an invasion? This question has been asked with particular vehemence since the US intervention in Iraq, but it faces all military operations seeking to impose peace in countries torn by civil war. This book highlights the critical role of international organisations (IOs) as gatekeepers to international legitimacy for modern peace enforcement operations. The author analyses five operations launched through four IOs: the ECOWAS intervention in Liberia, the SADC operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Lesotho, the NATO Kosovo campaign and the UN intervention in East Timor. In all these campaigns, lead states sought IO mandates primarily to establish the international legitimacy of their interventions. The evidence suggests that international relations are structured by commonly accepted rules, that both democratic and authoritarian states care about the international legitimacy of their actions, and that IOs have a key function in world politics.

Pieth, Low, & Cullen: Commentary on the OECD Convention on Bribery

Mark Pieth (Univ. Basel - Law), Lucinda A. Low (Steptoe & Johnson LLP), & Peter J. Cullen (Academy of European Law, Trier) have published The OECD Convention on Bribery: A Commentary (Cambridge Univ. Press 2007). Here's the abstract:

The OECD Convention is the first major international treaty specifically to address 'supply-side bribery' by sanctioning the briber. The OECD Convention establishes an international standard for compliance with anti-corruption rules by 36 countries, including the 30 OECD members and six non-member countries, with the leading OECD exporting countries receiving particular attention. This book is an article-by-article commentary which gives particular attention to the results of the OECD monitoring process as applied to state implementation. Companies in particular are at ever greater risk of legal and 'reputational' damage resulting from failure to comply with the anti-corruption standards set inter alia, by the OECD Convention. This book provides them with comprehensive guidance on the OECD standards. The commentary also constitutes a significant work of comparative criminal law. It is written and edited by persons who include experts involved in development of the Convention standards as well as academics and legal practitioners.

Movsesian: Judging International Judgments

Mark L. Movsesian (Hofstra - Law) has posted Judging International Judgments (Va. J. Int'l L., forthcoming 2007). Here's the abstract:

This article explores the Supreme Court's decision last term in Sanchez-Llamas v. Oregon. In Sanchez-Llamas, the Court considered the effect that rulings of international tribunals – what I call “international judgments” – should have in American courts. The main opinions in the case mirror a scholarly debate that has raged for the last decade. The Court's opinion adopts a dualist position, under which international judgments have only information value. The dissent, by contrast, adopts the comity model that has gained considerable academic support in recent years. Under that model, American courts defer to international judgments, where possible, in the interests of global uniformity. I argue that the Court's position is the better one. The dualist approach allows domestic courts to balance the competing demands of international order and local autonomy. The comity model, by contrast, draws support from inapposite regional analogies and fails to solve the legitimacy problems that international courts present. In rejecting the comity model, the Sanchez-Llamas Court casts doubt on the long-term prospects of comity scholarship and assures that the American approach to international judgments will be a sensible one.

New Issue: Journal of World Investment & Trade

The latest issue of the Journal of World Investment & Trade (Vol. 8, no. 2, April 2007) is out. Contents include:

• August Reinisch, Necessity in International Investment Arbitration - An Unnecessary Split of Opinions in Recent ICSID Cases? Comments on CMS v. Argentina and LG&E v. Argentina


• Veijo Heiskanen, The Doctrine of Indirect Expropriation in Light of the Practice of the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal


• A.F.M. Maniruzzaman, National Laws Providing for Stability of International Investment Contracts: A Comparative Perspective


• Mohammed El Said, Surpassing Checks, Overriding Balances and Diminishing Flexibilities - FTA-IPRS Plus Bilateral Trade Agreements: From Jordan to Oman


• Hakim Ben Hammouda and Mustapha Sadni Jallab, Trade Liberalization and Development: Lessons for Africa


• Ngangjoh Hodu Yenkong, Revisiting some Issues of Concern in the DBS Review Process in 2006: The Appellate Body Reports in Mexico - Tax Measures on Soft Drinks and Other Beverages and United States - "Zeroing" of Dumping Margins in Context


• Bashar H. Malkawi, The WTO, Security and Peace: Are they Compatible, and if so, what is the Framework?

New Issue: Boston College International & Comparative Law Review

The latest issue of the Boston College International & Comparative Law Review (Vol. 30, no. 1, Winter 2007) is out. Contents include:

• Symposium - Sharpening the Cutting Edge of International Human Rights Law: Unresolved Issues of War Crimes Tribunals
• Daniel Kanstroom, Foreword
• Patricia M. Wald, Tribunal Discourse and Intercourse: How the International Courts Speak to One Another
• Devin O. Pendas, "The Magical Scent of the Savage": Colonial Violence, the Crisis of Civilization, and the Origins of the Legalist Paradigm of War
• Allan A. Ryan, Nuremberg's Contributions to International Law
• Donald L. Hafner & Elizabeth B. L. King, Beyond Traditional Notions of Transitional Justice: How Trials, Truth Commissions, and Other Tools for Accountability Can and Should Work Together
• William J. Fenrick, Riding The Rhino: Attempting to Develop Usable Legal Standards for Combat Activities
• Judith A. McMorrow, Creating Norms of Attorney Conduct in International Tribunals: A Case Study of the ICTY
• Susan Somers, Rule 11 BIS of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia: Referral of Indictments to National Courts
• Phillip L. Weiner, Fitness Hearings in War Crimes Cases: From Nuremberg to The Hague

New Issue: Journal of Conflict Resolution

The latest issue of the Journal of Conflict Resolution (Vol. 51, no. 3, June 2007) is out. Contents include:

• Philip B. K. Potter, Does Experience Matter?: American Presidential Experience, Age, and International Conflict
• Brian C. Rathbun, Hierarchy and Community at Home and Abroad: Evidence of a Common Structure of Domestic and Foreign Policy Beliefs in American Elites
• Harald Schoen, Personality Traits and Foreign Policy Attitudes in German Public Opinion
• Chen-Bo Zhong, Jeffrey Loewenstein, & J. Keith Murnighan, Speaking the Same Language: The Cooperative Effects of Labeling in the Prisoner's Dilemma
• Derek J. Clark & Kai A. Konrad, Asymmetric Conflict: Weakest Link against Best Shot
• Douglas M. Stinnett, International Uncertainty, Foreign Policy Flexibility, and Surplus Majority Coalitions in Israel
• Patricia L. Sullivan, War Aims and War Outcomes: Why Powerful States Lose Limited Wars

New Issue: Journal of International Economic Law

The latest issue of the Journal of International Economic Law (Vol. 10, no. 2, June 2007) is out. Contents include:

• Rudolf Adlung, Negotiations on Safeguards and Subsidies in Services: A Never-ending Story?
• Denis Audet, Smooth as Silk? A First Look at the Post MFA Textiles and Clothing Landscape
• Andrew Green & Tracey Epps, The WTO, Science, and the Environment: Moving Towards Consistency
• John Maton & Carolyn Maton, Independence Under Fire: Extra-legal Pressures and Coalition Building in WTO Dispute Settlement
• Rex J. Zedalis, When Do the Activities of Private Parties Trigger WTO Rules?
• Cosmas Milton Obote Ochieng, The EU–ACP Economic Partnership Agreements and the ‘Development Question’: Constraints and Opportunities Posed by Article XXIV and Special and Differential Treatment Provisions of the WTO
• Bruce Wilson, Compliance by WTO Members with Adverse WTO Dispute Settlement Rulings: The Record to Date