Bisset: Truth Commissions and Criminal Courts

Alison Bisset (Univ. of Reading - Law) has published Truth Commissions and Criminal Courts (Cambridge Univ. Press 2012). Here's the abstract:

This detailed evaluation of the relationship between trials and truth commissions challenges their assumed compatibility through an analysis of their operational features at national, inter-state and international levels. Alison Bisset conducts case-study analyses of national practice in South Africa, East Timor and Sierra Leone, evaluates the problems posed by the International Criminal Court and considers the challenges presented by the possibility of bystander state prosecutions. At each level, she highlights potential operational conflicts and formulates targeted proposals to enable effective coexistence.

Larsen: The Human Rights Treaty Obligations of Peacekeepers

Kjetil Mujezinović Larsen (Univ. of Oslo - Norwegian Centre for Human Rights) has published The Human Rights Treaty Obligations of Peacekeepers (Cambridge Univ. Press 2012). Here's the abstract:

Do States, through their military forces, have legal obligations under human rights treaties towards the local civilian population during UN-mandated peace operations? It is frequently claimed that it is unrealistic to require compliance with human rights treaties in peace operations and this has led to an unwillingness to hold States accountable for human rights violations. In this book, Kjetil Larsen criticises this position by addressing the arguments against the applicability of human rights treaties and demonstrating that compliance with the treaties is unrealistic only if one takes an 'all or nothing' approach to them. He outlines a coherent and more flexible approach which distinguishes clearly between positive and negative obligations and makes treaty compliance more realistic. His proposals for the application of human rights treaties would also strengthen the legal framework for human rights protection in peace operations without posing any unrealistic obligations on the military forces.

Sharp: The Significance of Human Rights for the Debt of Countries in Transition

Dustin N. Sharp (Univ. of San Diego - School of Peace Studies) has posted The Significance of Human Rights for the Debt of Countries in Transition (in Making Sovereign Financing & Human Rights Work, Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky & Jernej Letnar Černič eds., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

High levels of sovereign debt create a thorny moral, political, and legal problem for many of the world’s poorer countries. What should a government do when it is not possible to meet debt service obligations while at the same time providing for a bare minimum of essential services in areas such as health care and education? This dilemma is particularly poignant for new regimes transitioning from conflict or dictatorship to democracy where many of the debts in question were taken out by a predecessor regime that may have used the money for purposes not consistent with the basic will and human rights of the population. Payment of these debts is legally required yet seems morally repugnant, especially considering that it will have further negative human rights impacts going forward as a successor regime’s ability to meet basic needs is reduced.

Despite the strong linkages between debt and human rights evident in this dilemma, at the level of international financial institutions and other lenders, the problems created by high levels of sovereign debt are typically addressed through a prism of debt management and sustainability, rather than one of human rights and social justice, of abstract poverty reduction, rather than individual rights fulfillment. At the same time, the so-called ‘odious’ and ‘illegitimate’ debts of predecessor regimes have only rarely featured in transitional justice processes, which have tended to foreground violations of physical integrity — murder, rape, torture, disappearances, etc — while pushing economic crimes and economic violence to the margins. The result is that questions of debt have not always been considered from a human-rights perspective.

Yet viewing the tough questions created by high levels of sovereign debt through a human rights lens is important, not because it provides the answers to some of the seemingly intractable dilemmas of poverty and debt, but because such a perspective calls upon policymakers to ask some of the right questions. Since it would require participants in the system to think through the linkages between debt and concrete human rights impacts to a greater extent than has historically been the case, such a perspective has important policy implications for lenders and borrowers alike. In the particular context of countries in transition, greater attention to the linkages between debt and human rights could also lead to the mobilization of important practical tools for both grappling with what went wrong in the past and promoting policy and accountability frameworks that could help to prevent recurrence going forward.

Boothby: The Law of Targeting

William H. Boothby (formerly, Royal Air Force) has published The Law of Targeting (Oxford Univ. Press 2012). Here's the abstract:

Targeting is the primary method for securing strategic objectives in an armed conflict. Failure to comply with the law of targeting jeopardizes the achievement of those aims. It is therefore essential that all those involved in or studying issues surrounding targeting have an accurate and complete understanding of this area of law. This book offers the definitive and comprehensive statement of all aspects of the law of targeting. It is a 'one-stop shop' that answers all relevant questions in depth. It has been written in an open, accessible yet comprehensive style, and addresses both matters of established law and issues of topical controversy.

The text explains the meanings of such terms as 'civilian', 'combatant', and 'military objective'. Chapters are devoted to the core targeting principles of distinction, discrimination, and proportionality, as well as to the relationship between targeting and the protection of the environment and of objects and persons entitled to special protection. New technologies are also covered, with chapters looking at attacks using unmanned platforms and a discussion of the issues arising from cyber warfare. The book also examines recent controversies and perceived ambiguities in the rules governing targeting, including the use of human shields, the level of care required in a bombing campaign, and the difficulties involved in determining whether someone is directly participating in hostilities. This book will be invaluable to all working in this contentious area of law.

Hollis: The Oxford Guide to Treaties

Duncan B. Hollis (Temple Univ. - Law) has published The Oxford Guide to Treaties (Oxford Univ. Press 2012). The table of contents is here. Here's the abstract:

From trade relations to greenhouse gasses, from shipwrecks to cybercrime, treaties structure the rights and obligations of states, international organizations, and individuals. For centuries, treaties have regulated relations among nation states. Today, they are the dominant source of international law. Being adept with treaties and international agreements is an indispensable skill for anyone engaged in international relations, including international lawyers, diplomats, international organization officials, and representatives of non-governmental organizations.

The Oxford Guide to Treaties provides a comprehensive guide to treaties, shedding light on the rules and practices surrounding the making, interpretation, and operation of these instruments. Leading experts provide essays designed to introduce the law of treaties and offer practical insights into how treaties actually work. Foundational issues are covered, including what treaties are and when they should be used, alongside detailed analyses of treaty formation, application, interpretation, and exit. Special issues associated with treaties involving the European Union and other international organizations are also addressed. These scholarly treatments are complimented by a set of model treaty clauses. Real examples illustrate the approaches treaty-makers can take on topics such as entry into force, languages, reservations, and amendments. The Oxford Guide to Treaties thus provides an authoritative reference point for anyone involved in the creation or interpretation of treaties or other forms of international agreement.

Viñuales & Dupuy: The Challenge of ‘Proliferation’: An Anatomy of the Debate

Jorge E. Viñuales (Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies - Law) & Pierre-Marie Dupuy (European Univ. Institute - Law) have posted The Challenge of ‘Proliferation’: An Anatomy of the Debate (in The Oxford Handbook of International Adjudication, C. Romano, K. Alter & Y. Shany eds., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

This chapter provides an anatomy of the ‘proliferation’ debate. The impact of ‘proliferation’ on the international legal order is analyzed through the prism of three core questions: (I) legalization; (II) coherence; and (III) openness. The question of ‘legalization’ refers to the increasing availability and reach of international adjudication to address questions hitherto covered by considerations of sovereignty, non-intervention and political opportunity. In this context, the term ‘legalization’ is therefore a shortcut for the advancement of the judicial rule of law in international affairs. The question of ‘coherence’ encompasses issues such as forum competition and forum shopping, conflicting decisions, the role of precedent, the development/use of coordination techniques and/or of control systems. The question of ‘openness’ looks at the integration of values and interests protected by certain branches of international law into other branches. Openness is also important because the very existence and availability of international adjudication may shift the level at which certain decisions are made and, therefore, raise issues of transparency and participation in international proceedings. In conclusion, we offer some observations on a question where the three debates above intersect, namely the legitimacy of international adjudication (IV).

Call for Papers: Trade Governance: Integrating Africa into the World Economy Through International Economic Law

A call for papers has been issued for the second African International Economic Law Network Conference, to take place March 7-8, 2013, in Johannesburg. The theme is "Trade Governance: Integrating Africa into the World Economy Through International Economic Law." Here's the call:

CALL FOR PAPERS

Whereas people in developing countries are becoming richer, about a billion others, mostly found in Africa and Central Asia, are being thrown deep into poverty. While there is a plethora of reasons for why this phenomenon is occurring, one of the key factors is isolation. Put more precisely, the argument is that poverty is rife in Africa because Africa is isolated and not integrated into the world economy. Consequently, most African countries are not able to enjoy the benefits of international economic law, whose main objective is to make people live better through open and fair markets and deeper integration into the world economy.

It is against this background that the conference seeks firstly to bring together academics, intergovernmental organisations, governments, policy makers, economists, private sector and NGOs to discuss the ways in which African states’ economies can be integrated into Africa (intraAfrica) and the world.

Secondly, it is the objective of the conference to determine the role that intergovernmental organisations, governments, private sector and NGOs can play to integrate African states into the world economy and within Africa.

To this effect, the question is – how do we insert Africa into the global economy on the key issues, that is, what are the key issues that need to be addressed for Africa’s development?

In addressing this question, what can be the role of intergovernmental organisations, states, private sector and NGOs in integrating Africa in the world economy and within Africa on the following issues:

• Trade in goods and agriculture
• Trade in services
• Foreign investment
• International finance and monetary policy
• Governance
• Competition law and policy
• Intellectual property rights and technology acquisition
• Infrastructure development and economic integration (especially transportation and energy)
• Dispute settlement
• Multilateral economic governance and African economic integration

Thirdly, on a comparative note, how have other regions such as Latin America and Asia, which were once isolated, become integrated into the world economy? What can be the lessons for Africa and how can such lessons be applied to Africa?

Papers discussing global economic integration and development will be welcome as well. It is planned to publish selected papers presented at the conference in a book.

Abstract Submission

The Mandela Institute at Wits School of Law and the AfIELN conference committee invite submissions of abstracts on the general theme, ‘Trade Governance’. The theme reflects the importance of integrating Africa in global trade and investment. The theme also calls for the fact that Africa’s development is tied to integration into the world economy through international economic law. Abstracts on the aforementioned issues are particularly invited.

Abstracts should be submitted by email to Julie.Dunsford@ wits.ac.za by 7 September 2012. Submissions should include an email with the author’s name and full contact information, and a Word attachment with an anonymous abstract of no more than 300 words. Abstracts will be considered by a process of double-blind reviews and decisions on proposals will be sent by 5 October. Selected presenters will need to submit their papers (maximum 8 pages) for inclusion in the conference package by 1 February 2013.

Pildes & Issacharoff: Targeted Warfare: Individuating Enemy Responsibility

Richard H. Pildes (New York Univ. - Law) & Samuel Issacharoff (New York Univ. - Law) have posted Targeted Warfare: Individuating Enemy Responsibility. Here's the abstract:

This Article argues that the legitimacy of the use of military force is undergoing a fundamental but insufficiently appreciated moral and legal transformation. The transformation is this: whereas the traditional practices and laws of war defined “the enemy” in terms of categorical, group-based judgments that turned on status – a person was an enemy not because of any specific actions he himself engaged in, but because he was a member of an opposing army – we are now moving to a world that, implicitly or explicitly, requires the individuation of personal responsibility of specific “enemy” persons before the use of military force is justified. Increasingly, the legitimate use of military force is tied to adjudicative-like judgments about the individual acts and roles of specific “enemy” figures; that is the case whether the force involved is military detention or lethal killing. This transformation transcends the conventional debates about whether terrorism should be treated more like war or crime and is more profound in its implications.

This readjustment in the basic premises underlying the justified use of military force will have, and is already having, implications for all the institutions involved in the use of military force and in the processes by which decisions are made to use force. For the military, this change will generate pressures to create internal, adjudicative-like processes to ensure accurate, credible judgments about the individual responsibility of particular “enemy” fighters. For the executive, these changes will propel greater engagement in decisions that had previously been more exclusively within the province of the military itself. For the courts, this transformation toward individuated judgments of responsibility will inevitably bring about a greater judicial role in assessing wartime judgments than in the past, as has begin to occur already. These changes are not yet directly reflected (or at least fully reflected) in the formal laws of war, but we anticipate that as these changes embed themselves in the practices of states, especially dominant states, these changes in practice will also eventually come to be embodied in the legal frameworks that regulate the use of force. This Article, after identifying this fundamental transformation as the central factor driving struggles over the proper boundaries of military force, then explores the ramifications of this change for issues like military detention and targeted killings.

New Issue: Legal Issues of Economic Integration

The latest issue of Legal Issues of Economic Integration (Vol. 39, no. 3, 2012) is out. Contents include:

• N. Jansen Calamita, The Making of Europe’s International Investment Policy: Uncertain First Steps
• Roman Petrov, Energy Community As a Promoter of the European Union’s ‘Energy Acquis’ to Its Neighbourhood
• Sara Poli, The Legal Standing of Private Parties in the Area of State Aids After the Appeal in Commission v. Kronoply/Kronotex
• Justin Nogarede, Levelling the (Football) Field: Should Individuals Play by Free Movement Rules?

New Issue: Journal of International Arbitration

The latest issue of the Journal of International Arbitration (Vol. 29, no. 4, August 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Laurens J.E. Timmer, The Meaning of ‘Investment’ as a Requirement for Jurisdiction Ratione Materiae of the ICSID Centre
• Fernando Dias Simões, Macau: A Seat for Sino-Lusophone Commercial Arbitration
• Juraj Gyarfas, Constitutional Scrutiny of Arbitral Awards: Odd Precedents in Central Europe
• Fifi Junita, Judicial Review of International Arbitral Awards on the Public Policy Exception in Indonesia
• Reza Mohtashami & Merryl Lawry-White, The (Non)-Application of the New York Convention by the Qatari Courts: ITIIC v. Dyncorp
• James Otis Rodner & Jaime Martínez Estévez, BITs in Pieces: The Effectiveness of ICSID Jurisdiction after the ICSID Convention Has Been Denounced
• Dyalá Jiménez Figueres, Investment Arbitration in Costa Rica

New Issue: Journal of Private International Law

The latest issue of the Journal of Private International Law (Vol. 8, no. 2, August 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Jonathan Hill, The Significance of Foreign Judgments Relating to an Arbitral Award in the Context of an Application to Enforce the Award in England
• Beligh Elbalti, The Jurisdiction of Foreign Courts and the Enforcement of their Judgments in Tunisia: A Need for Reconsideration
• Jan-Jaap Kuipers, Schemes of Arrangement and Voluntary Collective Redress: A Gap in the Brussels I Regulation
• Csongor István Nagy, The Word is a Dangerous Weapon: Jurisdiction, Applicable Law and Personality Rights in EU Law - Missed and New Opportunities
• Jenny Papettas, Direct Actions Against Insurers of Intra-community Cross-Border Traffic Accidents: Rome II and the Motor Insurance Directives
• Jonathan Fitchen, “Recognition“, Acceptance and Enforcement of Authentic Instruments in the Succession Regulation
• Justin Borg-Barthet, The Principled Imperative to Recognise Same-Sex Unions in the EU
• Peter De Verneuil Smith, Ben Lasserson, & Ross Rymkiewicz, Reflections on Owusu: The Radical Decision in Ferrexpo

Conference: 6th Annual International Humanitarian Law Dialogs

The 6th Annual International Humanitarian Law Dialogs will be held at the Chautauqua Institution on August 26-28, 2012. The theme is "Hybrid International Courts: A Tenth Anniversary Retrospective on the Special Court for Sierra Leone." The program is here.

New Issue: Review of International Political Economy

The latest issue of the Review of International Political Economy (Vol. 19, no. 3, 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Tim DiMuzio, Capitalizing a future unsustainable: Finance, energy and the fate of market civilization
• Andrew Baker, The ‘public interest’ agency of international organizations? The case of the OECD Principles of Corporate Governance
• Patrick J.W. Egan, Is worker repression risky? Foreign direct investment, labour rights and assessments of risk in developing countries
• Juan Díez Medrano & Michael Braun, Uninformed citizens and support for free trade
• Ben Clift & Jim Tomlinson, When rules started to rule: the IMF, neo-liberal economic ideas and economic policy change in Britain
• Xiaobo Su, Rescaling the Chinese state and regionalization in the Great Mekong Subregion

New Issue: Journal of World Trade

The latest issue of the Journal of World Trade (Vol. 46, no. 4, August 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Robert Wolfe, Protectionism and Multilateral Accountability during the Great Recession: Drawing Inferences from Dogs Not Barking
• Marina Foltea, The WTO-WCO: A Model of Judicial Institutional Cooperation?
• Pablo Klein-Bernard & Jorge A. Huerta-Goldman, The Cushioned Negotiation: The Case of WTO’s Industrial Tariff Liberalization
• Jing Kang, The Presumption of Good Faith in the WTO ‘As Such’ Cases: A Reformulation of the Mandatory/Discretionary Distinction as an Analytical Tool
• Yong-Shik Lee, First WTO Case on Transitional Product-Safeguard Measure under Section 16 of the Protocol of China’s Accession to the WTO: Affirming Discriminatory Safeguard Measure by the WTO?
• Hardeep Basra, Increased Legalization or Politicalization? A Comparison of Accession under the GATT and WTO
• Wenjie Qian, The Dilemma of China as Respondent to Anti-Subsidy Proceedings: A Study of the First EU Anti-Subsidy Investigation against China

New Issue: Revue Générale de Droit International Public

The latest issue of the Revue Générale de Droit International Public (Vol. 116, no. 2, 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Linos-Alexandre Sicilianos, L'influence des droits de l'homme sur la structure du droit international. Deusième partie: les conséquences structurelles de la hiérarchisation
• Mélanie Dubuy, Le droit à l'eau potable et à l'assainissement et le droit international
• Niki Aloupi, L'invocation d'une règle conventionnelle de répartition des compétences juridictionnelles devant le juge judiciaire français. Réflexions sur les afaires Trans Artcic, Fast Independance et Vytautas

Viñuales & Dupuy: Human Rights and Investment Disciplines: Integration in Progress

Jorge E. Viñuales (Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies - Law) & Pierre-Marie Dupuy (European Univ. Institute - Law) have posted Human Rights and Investment Disciplines: Integration in Progress (in International Investment Law, M. Bungenberg, J. Griebel, S. Hobe, & A. Reinisch eds., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

Foreign investment law and human rights law are usually considered, be it by scholars or by arbitrators, as wholly distinct, autonomous or even antagonistic legal domains – this perception partaking to and seemingly reinforcing the very fashionable and catch-all concept of “fragmentation”. The present chapter will assess the extent to which such a claim may be warranted analyzing the relations between international investment law and human rights law from the perspective of their - respective - origins, contents, and means of adjudication. We show that these two areas of public international law are being increasingly integrated through a process that is ceasing to be one-sided (either from the perspective of investment law or human rights) to become more even-handed, i.e. providing increasing room for considerations of human rights in investment disputes and, conversely, providing increasing space for the protection of foreign investment in human rights disputes. Given the focus of the present volume on international investment law, however, our analysis takes the perspective of investment tribunals referring only briefly, as relevant, to that of human rights courts.

New Issue: Ocean Development & International Law

The latest issue of Ocean Development & International Law (Vol. 43, no. 3, 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Tara Davenport, Submarine Communications Cables and Law of the Sea: Problems in Law and Practice
• Catarina Grilo, Aldo Chircop & José Guerreiro, Prospects for Transboundary Marine Protected Areas in East Africa
• Donald R. Rothwell, International Straits and Trans-Arctic Navigation
• Shih-Ming Kao, Nathaniel Sifford Pearre & Jeremy Firestone, Regional Cooperation in the South China Sea: Analysis of Existing Practices and Prospects
• Suk Kyoon Kim, China and Japan Maritime Disputes in the East China Sea: A Note on Recent Developments

Petersmann: International Economic Law in the 21st Century: Constitutional Pluralism and Multilevel Governance of Interdependent Public Goods

Ernst-Ulrich Petersmann (European Univ. Institute - Law) has published International Economic Law in the 21st Century: Constitutional Pluralism and Multilevel Governance of Interdependent Public Goods (Hart Publishing 2012). Here's the abstract:

The state-centred 'Westphalian model' of international law has failed to protect human rights and other international public goods effectively. Most international trade, financial and environmental agreements do not even refer to human rights, consumer welfare, democratic citizen participation and transnational rule of law for the benefit of citizens. This book argues that these 'multilevel governance failures' are largely due to inadequate regulation of the 'collective action problems' in the supply of international public goods, such as inadequate legal, judicial and democratic accountability of governments vis-a-vis citizens. Rather than treating citizens as mere objects of intergovernmental economic and environmental regulation and leaving multilevel governance of international public goods to discretionary 'foreign policy', human rights and constitutional democracy call for 'civilizing' and 'constitutionalizing' international economic and environmental cooperation by stronger legal and judicial protection of citizens and their constitutional rights in international economic law.

Moreover intergovernmental regulation of transnational cooperation among citizens must be justified by 'principles of justice' and 'multilevel constitutional restraints' protecting rights of citizens and their 'public reason'. The reality of 'constitutional pluralism' requires respecting legitimately diverse conceptions of human rights and democratic constitutionalism. The obvious failures in the governance of interrelated trading, financial and environmental systems must be restrained by cosmopolitan, constitutional conceptions of international law protecting the transnational rule of law and participatory democracy for the benefit of citizens.

Lovell & Primoratz: Protecting Civilians During Violent Conflict: Theoretical and Practical Issues for the 21st Century

David W. Lovell (Univ. of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy) & Igor Primoratz (Charles Sturt Univ.) have published Protecting Civilians During Violent Conflict: Theoretical and Practical Issues for the 21st Century (Ashgate 2012). The table of contents is here. Here's the abstract:

There is almost unanimous agreement that civilians should be protected from the direct effects of violent conflict, and that the distinction between combatant and non-combatant should be respected. But what are the fundamental ethical questions about civilian immunity? Are new styles of conflict making this distinction redundant?

Eloquently combining theory and practice, leading scholars from the fields of political science, law and philosophy have been brought together to provide an essential overview of some of the major ethical, legal and political issues with regard to protecting civilians caught up in modern inter- and intra-state conflicts. In doing so, they examine what is being done, and what can be done, to make soldiers more aware of their responsibilities in this area under international law and the ethics of war, and more able to respond appropriately to the challenges that will confront them in the field.

'Protecting Civilians During Violent Conflict' presents a clear-eyed look at the dilemmas facing regular combatants as they confront enemies in the modern battlespace, and especially the complications arising from the new styles of conflict where enemy and civilian populations merge.

New Issue: Journal of African and International Law

The latest issue of the Journal of African and International Law (Vol. 5, no. 1, 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Romuald R. Haule, Popular Participation in Constitution-Making and Legitimacy of the Constitution: the Experience of Tanzania
• Hakeem A. Olaniyan, Immunity of an International Organization from Suit in Nigeria: A Critical Review of the African Re-Insurance Corporation Decisions
• Caroline S. Ruvuga, Examination of the Laws on Protection of Domestic Products in Tanzania
• Elizabeth Lukelelwa, Legal Protection of Children against Trafficking in East Africa: A Comparative Human Rights Analysis between Tanzania and Kenya
• Gotrib Mgaya, Tax Disputes Resolution System In Tanzania: A Scrutiny of Its Effectiveness And Challenges

Francis: When War Ends: Building Peace in Divided Communities

David J. Francis (Univ. of Bradford - Peace Studies) has published When War Ends: Building Peace in Divided Communities (Ashgate 2012). The table of contents is here. Here's the abstract:

This volume critically examines what happens when war formally ends, the difficult and complex challenges and opportunities for winning the peace and reconciling divided communities. By reviewing a case study of the West African state of Sierra Leone, potential lessons for other parts of the world can be gained. Sierra Leone has emerged as a 'successful' model of liberal peacebuilding that is now popularly advertised and promoted by the international community as a powerful example of a country that they finally got right.

Concerns about how successful a model Sierra Leone actually is, are outlined in this project. As such this volume: provides a critical understanding of the nature, dynamics and complexity of post-war peacebuilding and development from an internal perspective; critically assesses the role and contribution of the international community to state reconstruction and post-war peacebuilding and evaluates what happens when war ends; and explores the potential relevance and impact of comparative international efforts of post-war state building and reconstruction in other parts of Africa and the world.

The collection focuses not only on understanding the root causes of conflict but also identifying and appreciating the possibilities and opportunities for peace. The lessons found in this book resonate well beyond the borders of Sierra Leone and Africa in general.

New Issue: Human Rights Review

The latest issue of the Human Rights Review (Vol. 13, no. 3, September 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Articles
• Eun-Jung Katherine Kim, Justifying Human Rights: Does Consensus Matter?
• Courtney Hillebrecht, Implementing International Human Rights Law at Home: Domestic Politics and the European Court of Human Rights
• Freek van der Vet, Seeking Life, Finding Justice: Russian NGO litigation and Chechen Disappearances before the European Court of Human Rights
• William H. Meyer, Indigenous Rights, Global Governance, and State Sovereignty
• Rosemary Nagy, Truth, Reconciliation and Settler Denial: Specifying the Canada–South Africa Analogy
• Current Issues and Controversies
• George Andreopoulos, Labor Rights as Human Rights? Challenges and Prospects for Collective Bargaining
• Lance Compa, Do International Freedom of Association Standards Apply to Public Sector Labor Relations in the United States?
• Susan Kang, Right v. Privilege: Contesting Public Sector Labor Rights in the United States
• Charles W. Baird, Government-Sector Unionism and Human Rights
• Joseph A. McCartin, Beyond Human Rights: Understanding and Addressing the Attack on Public Sector Unions

Zahar: Rights Dualism: The International Criminal Tribunals’ Two-Track Approach to the Rights of the Accused

Alexander Zahar (Macquarie Univ. - Law) has posted Rights Dualism: The International Criminal Tribunals’ Two-Track Approach to the Rights of the Accused. Here's the abstract:

If we are to continue to pass judgment on broadscale criminal responsibility for leadership roles in civil war — responsibility of the scope alleged against Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić, for example — we are committed to a pluralism, or at least a dualism, of dubious credentials. Cases of broadscale responsibility produce an approach to the accused's rights that is different from, and incompatible with, the one that has been developed around domestic criminal law. There is a direct causal link between the salient features of leadership trials, the law of evidence put in place by tribunal judges to support such trials, the use that the admitted evidence is put to, and, at the end of the line, the fair-trial rights of the accused. The option to persist with grand leadership cases commits us to a moral pluralism that takes the form of a rights dualism. Can we tolerate a two-track approach to the accused's rights?

Lister: Who are Refugees?

Matthew J. Lister (Univ. of Denver - Law) has posted Who are Refugees? (Law and Philosophy, forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

Hundreds of millions of people around the world are unable to meet their needs on their own, and do not receive adequate protection or support from their home states. These people, if they are to be provided for, need assistance from the international community. If we are to meet our duties to these people, we must have ways of knowing who should be eligible for different forms of relief. One prominent proposal from scholars and activists has been to classify all who are unable to meet their basic needs on their own as 'refugees,' and to extend to them the sorts of protections established under the United Nations Refugee Convention. Such an approach would expand the traditional refugee definition significantly. Unlike most academic commentators discussing this issue, I reject calls for an expanded refugee definition, and instead defend the core elements of the definition set out in the 1967 Protocol to the United Nations Refugee Convention. Using the tools of moral and political philosophy, I explain in this article how the group picked out by this definition has particular characteristics that make refugee protection distinctly appropriate for it. While many people in need of assistance can be helped 'in place', in their home countries, or by providing a form of temporary protected status to them, this is not so, I show, of convention refugees. The group picked out by the UN refugee definition is a normatively distinct group to whom we owe particular duties, duties we can only meet by granting them refuge in a safe country. Additionally, there are further practical reasons why a broader refugee definition may lead to problems. Finally, I argue that rejecting the call for a broader definition of refugees will better help us meet our duties to those in need than would an expanded definition.

Sivakumaran: The Law of Non-International Armed Conflict

Sandesh Sivakumaran (Univ. of Nottingham - Law) has published The Law of Non-International Armed Conflict (Oxford Univ. Press 2012). Here's the abstract:

This book brings together and critically analyses the disparate conventional, customary, and soft law relating to non-international armed conflict. All the relevant bodies of international law are considered, including international humanitarian law, international criminal law, and international human rights law. The book traces the changes to the legal framework applicable to non-international armed conflict from ad hoc regulation in the nineteenth and early twentieth century, to systematic regulation through the 1949 Geneva Conventions and 1977 Additional Protocols, to the transformation of the law in the mid-1990s. Armed conflicts ranging from the US civil war, the Algerian War of Independence, and the attempted secession of Biafra, through to the current conflicts in the Colombia, Philippines, and Sudan are all considered.

The identification and analysis of the law is complemented by a consideration of the practice, allowing both violations of, and respect for, the law, to be ascertained. Given that non-international armed conflicts are fought between states and non-state armed groups, or between armed groups, particular attention is paid to the oft-neglected views of armed groups. This is done through an analysis of hundreds of statements, unilateral declarations, internal regulations, and bilateral agreements issued by armed groups. Equivalent material emanating from states parties to conflicts is also considered. The book is thus an essential reference point for the law and practice of non-international armed conflicts.

Clapham: Brierly's Law of Nations: An Introduction to the Role of International Law in International Relations (Seventh Edition)

Andrew Clapham (Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies - Law) has published the seventh edition of Brierly's Law of Nations: An Introduction to the Role of International Law in International Relations (Oxford Univ. Press 2012). Here's the abstract:

This concise book is an introduction to the role of international law in international relations. Written for lawyers and non-lawyers alike, the book first appeared in 1928 and attracted a wide readership. This new edition builds on Brierly's scholarship and his idea that law must serve a social purpose. Previous editions of The Law of Nations have been the standard introduction to international law for decades, and are widely popular in many different countries due to the simplicity and brevity of the prose style.

Providing a comprehensive overview of international law, this new version of the classic book retains the original qualities and is again essential reading for all those interested in learning what role the law plays in international affairs. The reader will find chapters on traditional and contemporary topics such as: the basis of international obligation, the role of the UN and the International Criminal Court, the emergence of new states, the acquisition of territory, the principles covering national jurisdiction and immunities, the law of treaties, the different ways of settling international disputes, and the rules on resort to force and the prohibition of aggression.

Parra: The History of ICSID

Antonio R. Parra (formerly, International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes) has published The History of ICSID (Oxford Univ. Press 2012). Here's the abstract:

This is the first book to detail the history and development of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and its constituent treaty, the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States, covering the years from 1955 to 2010.

Antonio Parra, the first Deputy Secretary-General of ICSID, traces the immediate origins of the Convention, in the years 1955 to 1962, and gives a stage-by-stage narrative of the drafting of the Convention between 1962 and 1965. He recounts details of bringing the Convention into force in 1966 and the elaboration of the initial versions of the Regulations and Rules of ICSID adopted at the first meetings of its Administrative Council in 1967. The three periods 1968 to 1988, 1989 to 1999, and 2000 to June 30, 2010, are covered in separate chapters which examine the expansion of the Centre's activities and changes made to the Regulations and Rules over the years. There are also overviews of the conciliation and arbitration cases submitted to ICSID in the respective periods, followed by in-depth discussions of selected cases and key issues within them. A concluding chapter discusses some of the broad themes and findings of the book, and includes several suggestions for further changes at ICSID to help ensure its continued success.

New Issue: Chicago Journal of International Law

The latest issue of the Chicago Journal of International Law (Vol. 13, no. 1, Summer 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Robert J. Delahunty, From Just War to False Peace
• Richard A. Epstein, The Natural Law Bridge Between Private Law and Public International Law
• Graham Mayeda, Legal Aspects of the Security-Development Assistance in the "War on Terror"
• Michael P. Scharf, The International Court of Justice's Treatment of Circumstantial Evidence and Adverse Inferences
• Elisa Vecchione, Is It Possible to Provide Evidence of Insufficient Evidence? The Precautionary Principle at the WTO
• Andrew K. Woods, Toward a Situational Model for Regulating International Crimes