Call for Papers: Regime Interactions in Public International Law

The International Law Discussion Group of the University of Edinburgh School of Law has issued a call for papers for its biennial doctoral symposium, to take place June 17-18, 2013. The topic is "Regime Interactions in Public International Law." Here's the call:

EDINBURGH LAW SCHOOL

PHD SYMPOSIUM IN INTERNATIONAL LAW 2013

Regime Interactions in Public International Law

Call for papers

The International Law Discussion Group of the University of Edinburgh, School of Law, is launching a call for papers for its biennial spring Doctoral Symposium to take place on 17-18 June 2013. The event will be dedicated to the topic of ‘Regime Interactions’. Doctoral students and early career researchers are especially welcome to submit abstracts.

Today, the decentralized character of international law, together with the notion of functional specialization of its institutions, has resulted in the multiplication of specialized regimes governing almost all vital fields. This happens, for example, in trade law, law of the sea, human rights law, environmental law, humanitarian law, criminal law, etc.. The interactions among these specialized regimes have raised much debate in the academic community under different theoretical perspectives (e.g. M. Young (ed.), Regime Interactions, Cambridge University Press, 2011). The purpose of this symposium is to make a further contribution to understanding the role of regimes and their interaction in the international legal system.

Interactions take place both horizontally, between regimes with distinct but overlapping objectives, as well as vertically, between global and regional regimes dealing with the same subject. Such interconnections have the potential to affect the rights and obligation of states involved, creating legal uncertainty in international law if not properly addressed. The complexity of the legal framework can also undermine the effectiveness of regimes in achieving their goals. An understanding of how regimes interact on the fragmented international plane holds a key to a more complete perspective of contemporary international law. In particular, papers will be welcome addressing the one or more of following themes:

1) Theoretical aspects of regime interaction;

2) Interaction of law-making processes;

3) Regulation and control of regime interactions through the implementation of international law;

4) Management of interactions by courts and tribunals through interpretation and application of the law;

5) The impact of multiple regimes on the effectiveness of international law.

The International Law Discussion Group is looking forward to sharing ideas and experiences among the doctoral and early career research community. Different panels will be set up according to the themes and papers received. Each panel will be organized in an interactive discursive manner and will be chaired by academic member of staff, both internal and external to the Edinburgh School of Law. The organizers will provide information about suitable accommodation, but participants are expected to cover their own travel and accommodation costs.

The selection process will consist of the following stages:

a) Abstracts of a maximum of 250 words to be submitted by 1 March 2013 to intlawdg@gmail.com;

b) Selected participants will be notified by 15 March 2013;

c) Final papers should be submitted by 15 May 2013.