New Issue: Global Trade and Customs Journal

The latest issue of Global Trade and Customs Journal (Vol. 8, no. 6, 2013) is out. Contents include:

• Folkert Graafsma & Edwin Vermulst, The EU’s ‘Anti-Brosmann Amendment’: Back to the Future – Part II
• Terence P. Stewart, Trade Remedy Actions by WTO Members: A Cause for Concern or a Reflection of Improved Market Access?
• Damon V. Pike & Cylinda Parga, Caught in the Crosshairs: CBP Enforcement of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Orders
• Tobias Caspary & Tino Eckert, 2013 Reform of Germany’s Export Control Act
• Davide Rovetta, Maurizio Gambardella, & Vincenzo Villante, Italian Criminal Law and Customs Law Violations: A Brief Overview

New Issue: International Journal of Human Rights

The latest issue of the International Journal of Human Rights (Vol. 17, no. 4, 2013) is out. Contents include:

• Andrew Wolman, The relationship between national and sub-national human rights institutions in federal states
• Nicolas Carrillo, The framework of the protection of the human rights of persons with disabilities from non-state entities
• Eilionóir Flynn, Making human rights meaningful for people with disabilities: advocacy, access to justice and equality before the law
• Barbara Mikołajczyk, Is the ECHR ready for global ageing?
• Bnar Ariany, The Conflict between Women's Rights and Cultural Practices in Iraq
• Patience Munge Sone, Approaches to gender conflicts on land ownership in the courts of Anglophone Cameroon: human rights implications
• G. Alex Sinha, Child soldiers as super-privileged combatants

New Issue: ASA Bulletin

The latest issue of the ASA Bulletin (Vol. 30, no. 4, 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Werner Wenger, Ein Kontrapunkt: Die neue Schiedsgerichtsordnung der Handelskammer Deutschland-Schweiz
• Marc Iynedjian, Gas Sale and Purchase Agreements under Swiss Law
• Sandrine Giroud, Enforcement against State Assets and Execution of ICSID Awards in Switzerland: How Swiss Courts Deal with Immunity Defences
• Konstantin Pilkov, Recognition of international arbitration in Ukraine in figures

Call for Papers: Imperium iuris: Governance, Trade, Resources (Deadline Extended)

The deadline has been extended for the call for papers for the 2013 International Law Association Regional Conference, which is to take place August 29-31, 2013, at the European Public Law Organization. Further information on the conference, the call for papers, and other practical details may be found here.

Macklem: Global Poverty and the Right to Development in International Law

Patrick Macklem (Univ. of Toronto - Law) has posted Global Poverty and the Right to Development in International Law. Here's the abstract:

This Article advances an account of the right to development as a legal instrument that holds the international legal order accountable for its role in the production and reproduction of global poverty. It first distinguishes moral conceptions of human rights, as instruments that protect universal features of humanity, from legal conceptions, which tie their existence to their specification in international instruments promulgated in compliance with international legal norms governing the creation of legal rights and obligations. Despite textual ambiguities in the various instruments in which it finds expression, the right to development vests in individuals and communities who have yet to benefit from development. It imposes internal obligations on states in which they live to address conditions that contribute to their plight. The right also imposes external obligations on international legal actors, including developed states and international organizations, to assist developing states in poverty reduction. The right’s external obligations are negative and positive in nature. Its negative dimensions require states and international institutions to fashion rules and policies governing the global economy in ways that do not exacerbate global poverty. Its positive dimensions require states and international institutions to provide assistance to developing states in the form of development aid and debt relief. Both drawing on and departing from debates about global justice in contemporary political theory, it justifies these obligations by linking the purpose of the right to development to international law’s engagement with colonialism and economic globalization.

ASIL Women in International Law Interest Group Mentoring Program

The American Society of International Law’s Women in International Law Interest Group is launching a mentoring program that will match female law students or new professionals with experienced female international lawyers. This mentoring program is the first of its kind in the international law arena and is designed to foster a new generation of female international lawyers. The first iteration of the mentoring program will run from fall 2013 through spring 2014 in the United States, Canada, London, Geneva, and The Hague, and participants – both mentors and mentees – are being sought at this time. A flyer with more information is here.

New Issue: Journal of World Investment & Trade

The latest issue of the Journal of World Investment & Trade (Vol. 14, no. 3, 2013) is out. Contents include:

• Ardeshir Atai, Iranian Bilateral Investment Treaties: Substantive Principles and Standards
• Jimmy Skjold Hansen, “Missing Links” in Investment Arbitration: Quantification of Damages to Foreign Shareholders
• Ehab S. Abu-Gosh & Rafael Leal-Arcas, The Conservation of Exhaustible Natural Resources in the GATT and WTO: Implications for the Conservation of Oil Resources
• Syed Tariq Anwar, Icarus Paradox or Verto in Prosperum: Chinese Internet Firms, Business Models and Internationalization
• Badar Alam Iqbal & Bhawana Rawat, Role of India’s and China’s FDI, Trade and ODA in the Development of African Region
• Heather L. Bray, SOI - Save Our Investments! International Investment Law and International Humanitarian Law
• Shruti Iyer, Redifining Investment Regime in India: Post White Industries

New Issue: Mealey's International Arbitration Report

The latest issue of Mealey's International Arbitration Report (Vol. 28, no. 5, May 2013) is out.

Call for Papers: Celebrating of the Centenary of the Peace Palace

The International Court of Justice has issued a call for papers for a conference in celebration of the Centenary of the Peace Palace, to be held September 23, 2013. Here's the call:

Call for Papers

The International Court of Justice will host a conference in celebration of the Centenary of the Peace Palace on Monday, 23 September 2013. The programme will include four sessions:

1. A Century of International Justice, and Perspectives for the Future

2. The Role of the International Court of Justice for Enhancing the Rule of Law

3. The International Court of Justice and the International Legal System

4. The International Court of Justice and the United Nations: Relationship of the ICJ with other UN Organs

Speakers for the first three sessions have been invited by the Court. Speakers for the fourth session will be selected on the basis of abstracts submitted in response to this Call for Papers. Possible topics to be addressed by the papers are: (a) the role and relevance of Article 36 (3) of the Charter of the United Nations; (b) advisory opinions requested by United Nations organs; (c) the review by the Court of the legality of acts of United Nations organs; (d) the role of other United Nations organs for the implementation of the Court’s judgments.

Senior and junior scholars of any nationality are eligible to apply. Abstracts, in either English or French, should be no more than 2500 words in length and must be received by the Court by Wednesday, 10 July 2013. Only one abstract per author may be submitted. Abstracts received after the deadline will not be considered.

The selection of papers by a panel of three judges of the Court will take place on an anonymous basis. Abstracts should therefore not contain the authors’ contact details. They should however be accompanied by a cover letter providing this information, as well as by a curriculum vitae.

Applications should be sent to:

International Court of Justice

Attn: Jenny Grote Stoutenburg

Peace Palace

Carnegieplein 2

2517 KJ The Hague

The Netherlands

Selected speakers will be notified no later than Monday, 22 July 2013. Full papers must be received by the Court by Monday, 9 September 2013. The papers must be unpublished and ready to be included in proceedings which may later be published.

Unfortunately, the International Court of Justice is not in a position to meet travel and accommodation costs for any speaker at the Conference. The selected papers of those who will not be able to attend the Conference may be included in the proceedings.

De Hert, Flamme, Holvoet, & Struyven: Code of International Criminal Law and Procedure, annotated

Paul De Hert, Jean Flamme, Mathias Holvoet, & Olivia Struyven have published Code of International Criminal Law and Procedure, annotated (Larcier 2013). Here's the abstract:

The annotated Code of International Criminal Law and Procedure is the first commentary that discusses both the ICC Statute and the Statutes of the ad hoc tribunals in a systematic way. This is supplemented by a discussion of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence of the ICC.

Fischer: Militär- und Sicherheitsunternehmen in bewaffneten Konflikten und Friedenssicherungsoperationen

Andrea A.-K. Fischer has published Militär- und Sicherheitsunternehmen in bewaffneten Konflikten und Friedenssicherungsoperationen (Duncker & Humblot 2013). Here's the abstract:

Militär- und Sicherheitsunternehmen sind seit einigen Jahren bedeutende Akteure in bewaffneten Konflikten und Friedenssicherungsoperationen. Sie werden von Staaten, internationalen Organisationen, aber auch nichtstaatlichen Akteuren wie humanitären Organisationen oder Unternehmen, herangezogen. Die Autorin analysiert unter Berücksichtigung der Staatenpraxis und internationalen Judikatur umfassend die bestehenden völkerrechtlichen Fragen des Einsatzes von Militär- und Sicherheitsdienstleistern.

Der erste Teil untersucht den völkerrechtlichen Status unter Differenzierung nach unterschiedlichen Konfliktarten, Auftraggebern und Tätigkeitsfeldern. Der zweite Teil widmet sich der Rechtsbindung privater Dienstleister an das humanitäre Völkerrecht und an Menschenrechte. Hierbei geht die Autorin auch auf die strafrechtlichen Verantwortlichkeiten und die zivilrechtliche Haftung sowie auf die Pflichtenstellung von Staaten einschließlich bestehender due diligence-Pflichten und einer sich daraus ergebenden mittelbaren Pflichtenträgerschaft der privaten Akteure ein. Im Hinblick auf multinationale Friedenssicherungsoperationen wird im dritten Teil beleuchtet, inwieweit neben den Staaten auch Internationale Organisationen wie die Vereinten Nationen, die NATO oder die EU zur Durchsetzung des humanitären Völkerrechts und menschenrechtlicher Standards in Bezug auf Militär- und Sicherheitsunternehmen verpflichtet und für deren Handeln völkerrechtlich verantwortlich sind.

Simm: Sex in Peace Operations

Gabrielle Simm (Univ. of New South Wales - Australian Centre for Human Rights) has published Sex in Peace Operations (Cambridge Univ. Press 2013). Here's the abstract:

Gabrielle Simm's critical re-evaluation of sex between international personnel and local people examines the zero tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse and its international legal framework. Whereas most preceding studies of the issue have focused exclusively on military peacekeepers, Sex in Peace Operations also covers the private military contractors and humanitarian NGO workers who play increasingly important roles in peace operations. Informed by socio-legal studies, Simm uses three case studies (Bosnia, West Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo) to illustrate the extent of the problem and demonstrate that the problems of impunity for sexual crimes are not just a failure of political will but the result of the structural weaknesses of international law in addressing non-state actors. Combining the insights of feminist critique with a regulatory approach to international law, her conclusions will interest scholars of international law, peace and conflict studies, gender and sexuality, and development.

Graham: International Organizations as Collective Agents: Fragmentation and the Limits of Principal Control at the World Health Organization

Erin R. Graham (Drexel Univ. - Politics) has posted International Organizations as Collective Agents: Fragmentation and the Limits of Principal Control at the World Health Organization (European Journal of International Relations, forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

What factors influence IO faithfulness to mandates assigned by member states? Although recent literature treats IOs agents as autonomous actors in global politics, most work continues to treat the bureaucracy of an international organization as a unitary actor. I argue that the unitary actor assumption limits our ability to assess how internal factors such as fragmentation influence agent faithfulness. When we conceive of IO bureaucracies as collective agents — those including more than one bureaucratic actor and subject to internal fragmentation — IO faithfulness can be more fully explained. Specifically, fragmentation limits faithfulness by inhibiting the effectiveness of principals’ control mechanisms (i.e. oversight and agent screening and sanctioning). These arguments are illustrated using a case study of the World Health Organization and its efforts to improve health systems between 1982 and 2008.

Conference: Immunity of International Organizations: Functional necessity or out of date?

On June 9-10, 2013, Leiden Law School will host a conference on "Immunity of International Organizations: Functional necessity or out of date?" The program is here. Here's the idea:

This conference aims to bring together people well-versed in the immunity of international organizations, both from academic and from professional legal circles. A number of legal advisers of international organizations will give presentations. The conference is part of the research programme ‘Securing the Rule of Law in a World of Multilevel Jurisdiction’ of the Leiden Law School.

New Issue: Archiv des Völkerrechts

The latest issue of Archiv des Völkerrechts (Vol. 51, no. 1, March 2013) is out. Contents include:

• Abhandlungen
• Carmen Thiele, Der Schutz der Menschenrechte durch den IGH
• Ralf Müller-Terpitz, Assistierte Reproduktionsverfahren im Lichte der Europäischen Menschenrechtskonvention
• Stylianos-Ioannis G. Koutnatzis & A. Katarina Weilert, Fragen der menschlichen Reproduktion vor dem EGMR - Zugleich eine kritische Würdigung der Lehre vom staatlichen Beurteilungsspielraum (Margin of Appreciation)
• Jörg Gundel, Vom diplomatischen Schutz zum Recht der Investitionsschutzabkommen: Offene Fragen und alternative Wege beim Auslandsschutz privater Vermögensinteressen

Garcia: Global Justice and International Economic Law: Three Takes

Frank J. Garcia (Boston College - Law) has published Global Justice and International Economic Law: Three Takes (Cambridge Univ. Press 2013). Here's the abstract:

For centuries, international trade has been seen as essential to the wealth and power of nations. More recently we have started to understand its problematic role as an engine of distributive justice. In this compelling book Frank J. Garcia proposes a new way to evaluate, construct and manage international trade – one that is based on norms of economic justice, comparative advantage and national interest. Garcia examines three ways to conceptualize the problem of trade and global justice, drawn from Rawlsian liberalism, communitarianism and consent theory. These approaches illustrate specific issues of importance to the way global justice has been theorized, offering a pluralistic mode of arguing for global justice and highlighting the unique modes of discourse we employ when engaging with global justice and their implications for conceptualizing and arguing the problem. Garcia suggests a new direction for trade agreements built around truly consensual trade negotiations and the kind of international economic system they would structure.

Weiler: The Interpretation of International Investment Law

Todd Weiler has published The Interpretation of International Investment Law: Equality, Discrimination and Minimum Standards of Treatment in Historical Context (Martinus Nijhoff Publishers 2013). Here's the abstract:

In The Interpretation of International Investment Law: Equality, Discrimination and Minimum Standards of Treatment in Historical Context, author Todd Weiler demonstrates how historiographical analysis should be adopted in the interpretation of international investment law obligations. Weiler subjects some of the most commonly held beliefs about the nature and development of international investment law to a critical re-appraisal, based upon meticulously assembled historical record. In the process, the book provides readers with a fresh perspective on some of the oldest obligations in international law.

This stimulating contribution to the discourse on interpretation of international investment law standards sheds new light on the formation of such primary obligations as fair and equitable treatment, protection and security and the customary international law minimum standard of treatment for aliens. Additionally, a thought-provoking historical analysis explains why a one-size-fits-all approach to obligations found in both trade and investment treaties, such as MFN treatment and national treatment, must be rejected. With a keen attention to detail, The Interpretation of International Investment Law: Equality, Discrimination and Minimum Standards of Treatment in Historical Context reveals the dynamic relationship between historical analysis, critical theory and the construction of both customary and treaty norms in international investment law.

New Volume: Baltic Yearbook of International Law

The latest volume of the Baltic Yearbook of International Law (Vol. 12, 2012) is out. The theme is "After the Empire: International Law and the Post-Soviet Space." Contents include:

• Rima Tkatova, Russian Spirit, Soviet Heritage and Western Temptation: “Un-‘Peaceful Coexistence’” in Russia’s International Doctrine and Practice
• Sergei Yu. Marochkin, Contemporary Approaches of the Russian Doctrine to International Law: Identical to Western Ones?
• Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov, Legislative Regulation of Trans-boundary Use of Armed Force: Russian Case Study
• Levan Alexidze, Kosovo and South Ossetia: Similar or Different? Consequences for International Law
• Milena Sterio, A Tale of Two States: Territoriality and Minority Rights in Kosovo and Georgia
• Alena Douhan, CIS, CSTO and the United Nations: Could an Active Regional System of Collective Security Be Established?
• Massimo Starita, Entre contrôle du respect de la légalité conventionnelle et promotion de la légitimité démocratique : la Cour européenne des droits de l’homme face aux transitions démocratiques
• James A. Sweeney, Transitional Criminal Justice at the ECtHR: Implications for the Universality of Human Rights
• Christina M. Cerna, Comparing the Performance of the Russian Federation and the United States as regards Human Rights on the Regional and Universal Level
• Anton Burkov, Motivation for Direct Application of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in Russian Courts
• Jénya Grigorova, Dévéloppements récents en matière de transport et de commerce de gaz en mers Noire et Baltique – un jeu de société de nouvelle génération
• Khagani Guliyev, La mer Caspienne : un espace aquatique semi-délimité?
• Anna Marhold, In Too Deep – Russia, the Energy Charter Treaty and the Nord Stream Gas Pipeline

New Volume: International Law Studies (Blue Book) Series

The latest volume in the International Law Studies (Blue Book) Series (Vol. 89, 2013) is out. Contents include:

• Feature Article
• Geoffrey S. Corn, Laurie R. Blank, Chris Jenks & Eric Talbot Jensen, Belligerent Targeting and the Invalidity of a Least Harmful Means Rule
• Forum: Cyber War and International Law
• Matthew C. Waxman, Self-defensive Force against Cyber Attacks: Legal, Strategic and Political Dimensions
• Wolff Heintschel von Heinegg, Territorial Sovereignty and Neutrality in Cyberspace
• William Banks, The Role of Counterterrorism Law in Shaping ad Bellum Norms for Cyber Warfare
• Eric Talbot Jensen, Cyber Attacks: Proportionality and Precautions in Attack
• Robert M. Chesney, Computer Network Operations and U.S. Domestic Law: An Overview
• Michael N. Schmitt, Classification of Cyber Conflict
• Noam Lubell, Lawful Targets in Cyber Operations: Does the Principle of Distinction Apply?
• Vijay M. Padmanabhan, Cyber Warriors in the Jus in Bello
• John F. Murphy, Cyber War and International Law: Does the International Legal Process Constitute a Threat to U.S. Vital Interests?
• Paul Walker, Organizing for Cyberspace Operations: Selected Issues
• Michael J. Glennon, The Road Ahead: Gaps, Leaks and Drips
• William H. Boothby, Methods and Means of Cyber Warfare
• Laurie R. Blank, International Law and Cyber Threats from Non-State Actors
• Terry D. Gill & Paul A. L. Ducheine, Anticipatory Self-Defense in the Cyber Context
• Kenneth Watkin, The Cyber Road Ahead: Merging Lanes and Legal Challenges
• Jann K. Kleffner & Heather A. Harrison Dinniss, Keeping the Cyber Peace: International Legal Aspects of Cyber Activities in Peace Operations
• Yoram Dinstein, Cyber War and International Law: Concluding Remarks at the 2012 Naval War College International Law Conference
• Forum: Geography of War
• Ashley Deeks, The Geography of Cyber Conflict: Through a Glass Darkly
• Louise Arimatsu, The Law of State Responsibility in Relation to Border Crossings: An Ignored Legal Paradigm
• Peter Margulies, Networks in Non-International Armed Conflicts: Crossing Borders and Defining "Organized Armed Groups"
• Geoffrey S. Corn, Geography of Armed Conflict: Why it is a Mistake to Fish for the Red Herring

Second Annual Junior Faculty Forum for International Law

Today and tomorrow, May 29-30, 2013, the Annual Junior Faculty Forum for International Law hosts its second event, at the University of Nottingham. The Forum is convened by Dino Kritsiotis (Univ. of Nottingham - Law), Anne Orford (Univ. of Melbourne - Law), and J.H.H. Weiler (New York Univ. - Law), and its program is here.

New Volume: Anuario Español de Derecho Internacional

The latest volume of the Anuario Español de Derecho Internacional (Vol. 28, 2012) is out. Contents include:

• Estudios Doctrinales
• Romualdo Bermejo García, Los derechos humanos en áfrica
• Cástor Miguel Díaz Barrado, Nuevas perspectivas de las instituciones económicas en el espacio africano: avances politicos y normativos
• Ana manero SalvaDor colombia y la responsabilidad internacional por desapariciones forzadas
• Florabel Quispe Remón, Las normas de ius cogens: ausencia de catálogo
• Pablo Zapatero Miguel, Políticas globales sobre patentes farmacéuticas y salud pública: hechos y ficciones
• Miguel A. Acosta Sánchez, Encuentros y desencuentros hispano-británicos en las aguas en torno a Gibraltar: ¿son posibles acuerdos de cooperación práctica?
• Notas
• Antonio Blanc Altemir, La posición energética de china en asia central ante la pérdida progresiva de influencia de rusia: consecuencias para los intereses de la UE
• María Orozco Sáenz, Una organización mundial para el espacio ultraterrestre: reflexiones jurídicas relativas a su creación
• Eimys Ortiz Hernández, La oportunidad de turquía de posicionarse como líder regional ante la UE: la Primavera árabe
• Francisco Rubio Damian, Condicionantes de las intervenciones exteriores de seguridad de la Unión Europea
• Jesús Verdú Baeza, El medio ambiente como instrumento de cooperación trasnfronteriza: la reserva de la Biosfera intercontinental del Mediterráneo entre andalucía y Marruecos

Cameron & Chetail: Privatizing War: Private Military and Security Companies under Public International Law

Lindsey Cameron (Univ. of Geneva) & Vincent Chetail (Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies) have published Privatizing War: Private Military and Security Companies under Public International Law (Cambridge Univ. Press 2013). Here's the abstract:

A growing number of states use private military and security companies (PMSCs) for a variety of tasks, which were traditionally fulfilled by soldiers. This book provides a comprehensive analysis of the law that applies to PMSCs active in situations of armed conflict, focusing on international humanitarian law. It examines the limits in international law on how states may use private actors, taking the debate beyond the question of whether PMSCs are mercenaries. The authors delve into issues such as how PMSCs are bound by humanitarian law, whether their staff are civilians or combatants, and how the use of force in self-defence relates to direct participation in hostilities, a key issue for an industry that operates by exploiting the right to use force in self-defence. Throughout, the authors identify how existing legal obligations, including under state and individual criminal responsibility should play a role in the regulation of the industry.

Ambos: Punishment without a Sovereign? The Ius Puniendi Issue of International Criminal Law: A First Contribution towards a Consistent Theory of International Criminal Law

Kai Ambos (Georg-August Universität Göttingen - Law) has published Punishment without a Sovereign? The Ius Puniendi Issue of International Criminal Law: A First Contribution towards a Consistent Theory of International Criminal Law (Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, Vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 293-315, Summer 2013). Here's the abstract:

Current International Criminal Law (ICL) suffers from at least four fairly serious theoretical shortcomings. First, as a starting point, the concept and meaning of ICL in its different variations must be clarified (‘the concept and meaning issue’). Second, the question of whether and how punitive power can exist at the supranational level without a sovereign (‘the ius puniendi issue’) must be answered in a satisfactory manner. Third, the overall function or purpose of ICL as opposed to national criminal law (‘the overall function issue’) must be more convincingly explained. Fourth, the purposes of punishment in ICL, as opposed to the traditional purposes discussed in national criminal law, must be elaborated (‘the purposes of punishment issue’). There is a partly vertical and partly horizontal relationship between these issues. It is, for example, of course impossible to reflect upon ius puniendi, overall function and purposes of punishment without having clarified the concept of ICL in the first place. Also, a treatment of overall function and purposes of punishment seems to be predicated on the justification of the ius puniendi. Indeed, the lack of a satisfactory answer to the ius puniendi issue is maybe the most important theoretical weakness of current ICL. This article therefore aims to demonstrate that a supranational ius puniendi can be inferred from a combination of the incipient supranationality of the world order (understood normatively as an order of values) and the concept of a world society composed of world citizens whose law—the ‘world citizen law’ (‘Weltbürgerrecht’)—is derived from universal, indivisible and interculturally recognized human rights predicated upon a Kantian concept of human dignity. The incipient world order and the world society are represented by the international community (to be understood as a community of values) which becomes the holder of the ius puniendi.

Call for Papers: ASIL International Economic Law Interest Group Junior Scholars Research Forum

The International Economic Law Interest Group of the American Society of International Law has issued a call for papers for a Junior Scholars Research Forum, to be held at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, on November 22, 2013. Here's the call:

The American Society of International Law’s International Economic Law Interest Group (ASIL IEcLIG) is pleased to issue a Call for Proposals for its inaugural Junior Scholars Research Forum, to be held at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, in Philadelphia, on November 22, 2013. This one-day Research Forum will provide junior international economic law scholars with a supportive and constructive environment in which to present and receive feedback on their works-in-progress. Participation in the Forum is by invitation only. IEcLIG is inviting untenured international economic law scholars, including academics in tenure-track or non-tenure track positions, scholars with temporary academic appointments (e.g. VAPs, Fellows) and practitioners looking to enter legal academia in the near future to submit proposals for the Research Forum. Only authors of approved works-in-progress and a select group of established international law scholars will be invited to attend. Participants will present their work to a panel of other junior scholars and to a select group of established international law scholars, and will receive helpful and friendly suggestions on their work. Established scholars in international economic law will be assigned to each paper to provide helpful comments and suggestions. All topics concerning international economic law, (broadly defined to include areas related to but not limited to trade, investment, finance, international intellectual property) will be considered.

Lunch and dinner will be provided. A registration fee of $75.00 is required for ASIL non-members. Becoming an ASIL member is strongly encouraged if you plan to attend this event.

If you are a junior scholar working in the area of International Economic Law and are interested in participating in the Research Forum, please email a title and short abstract (no more than 500 words) detailing the subject of your intended paper, and a current CV to the Co-Chairs of ASIL-IEcLIG, Jason Yackee at jyackee@wisc.edu and Elizabeth Trujillo at etrujillo@suffolk.edu. The selection committee, made up of active scholars in international economic law, will review the submissions by blind review. Please do not include your name on the submission, but please do include an email so we can contact you. The deadline for receipt of proposals is June 25th, 2013. Invited participants must be committed to circulating a full draft paper to the Forum organizers at least three weeks prior to the Research Forum.

Unfortunately, the IEcLIG budget does not allow for any travel or other financial assistance for participants. The IEcLIG leadership will make its selection decisions by July 25th, 2013 and authors of selected proposals will be contacted by that date.

Garvey: Nuclear Weapons Counterproliferation: A New Grand Bargain

Jack Garvey (Univ. of San Francisco - Law) has published Nuclear Weapons Counterproliferation: A New Grand Bargain (Oxford Univ. Press 2013). Here's the abstract:

Nuclear Weapons Counterproliferation: A New Grand Bargain proposes a new legal and institutional framework for counterproliferation of nuclear weapons. Its proposal is designed to remedy the widely acknowledged breakdown of the architecture of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty on which we can no longer rely for global nuclear security. First, Nuclear Weapons Counterproliferation defines the distinctively dangerous character of contemporary nuclear risk and explains why the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty no longer provides a viable foundation for counterproliferation of nuclear weapons. It then sets out the reforms needed in order to limit the radical increase in availability, for rogue governments and terrorists, of nuclear weapons related material and technology. Garvey then proposes a new counterproliferation architecture, to be built on presently available scientific, legal, and institutional resources, which could achieve a critical reduction of nuclear risk and an expanded deterrence. Guiding principles for establishing this new architecture are formulated, including, most importantly, the principal mechanism for implementation, a proposed United Nations Security Council Counterproliferation Resolution applying equally for all states. This book presents what may be our best opportunity to secure a profoundly more effective global nuclear security and counter the world's current course to a catastrophic nuclear detonation.

de Wet & Vidmar: Conflicts between International Paradigms: Hierarchy Versus Systemic Integration

Erika de Wet (Univ. of Amsterdam - Law) & Jure Vidmar (Univ. of Oxford - Law) have posted Conflicts between International Paradigms: Hierarchy Versus Systemic Integration (Global Constitutionalism, forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

International law has developed as a horizontal system of norms in which no norm enjoys an automatic hierarchical superiority. Some theoretical concepts and judicial decisions have nevertheless suggested that a hierarchy was emerging in the international system of norms, with human rights at its apex. This article draws on the study of case law of domestic, regional and international judicial bodies to determine whether human rights are indeed given precedence over other international legal obligations. The article demonstrates that in the de-centralised international legal system, a preference given to one type of obligations may be a matter of functional bias rather than fully-fledged hierarchy. Human rights bodies may well favor human rights but this preference is not the universal pattern significant for all tribunals. Nevertheless, human rights obligations play a prominent role in the decisions of international bodies functioning within a different functional paradigm (e.g. WTO panels, investment arbitrations) as well as in jurisprudence of domestic courts. But these decisions do not suggest any hierarchy in international law. They rather reflect the approach of systematic integration of international legal obligations.

Bodansky: The Durban Platform: Issues and Options for a 2015 Agreement

Daniel Bodansky (Arizona State Univ. - Law) has posted The Durban Platform: Issues and Options for a 2015 Agreement. Here's the abstract:

The Durban Platform negotiations aim to develop a new climate change agreement by the end of 2015. This paper examines the key variables in the Durban Platform negotiations (legal form, structure, substance and process); the parameters imposed on the negotiations by the Durban Platform decision, the UNFCCC, and international law generally; the development of the existing climate change regime, which reflects both "top down and bottom up" elements; and the determinants of effectiveness. It then outlines three options for a Durban Platform outcome - an expanded Kyoto-like approach, a, "legalization of Cancun architecture" approach, and a multitrack approach. It concludes that, going forward, governments will need to draw on both top-down and bottom-up models to forge a more effective global agreement.

Reinhold: Good Faith in International Law

Steven Reinhold (Univ. of Bonn - Law) has posted Good Faith in International Law. Here's the abstract:

As a ‘general principle,’ good faith forms part of the sources of international law. Still not widely examined in relation to rights and obligations, the aim here is to demonstrate the specific characteristics of the principle. In general international law rules such as pacta sunt servanda, abuse of rights, estoppel and acquiescence, and negotiation of disputes are grounded to some extent in good faith. In treaty interpretation, good faith has various manifestations from the time prior to signature through to interpretation. These are outlined here. The contention is that good faith acts to mediate the effects of States’ rights in international law, in order to achieve acceptable results when competing interests exist. Fundamentally, good faith is a limitation of State sovereignty, albeit one that is necessary, as it protects other States and their trust and reliance in international law.

Glenn: The Cosmopolitan State

H. Patrick Glenn (McGill Univ. - Law) has published The Cosmopolitan State (Oxford Univ. Press 2013). Here's the abstract:

For more than two centuries the idea of the nation-state has been widespread. The expression is now widely used and is even to be unavoidable. The 'nation-state' implies that the population of a state should be homogenous in terms of language, religion, and ethnicity; the nation and the state should coincide. However history demonstrates that there never has been, and there never will be, a nation-state. Human diversity is manifest in states of all sizes, locations, and origins. This wide-ranging book argues that there should be no regret in the recognition of this empirical reality, since the notion of a nation-state has been the justification for some of the worst atrocities in human history. Since the nation-state is impossible, all states are cosmopolitan in character. They are cosmopolitan regardless of the language of their constitutions or official teaching and regardless of the extent to which they officially recognize their own diversity. The most successful states are those which are most successful in their own forms of cosmopolitanism. Cosmopolitan ways are infinitely varied, however, and must be sought in the intricate workings of individual states.

The cosmopolitan character of states is necessarily reflected in their law. The main instruments of legal cosmopolitanism have been those of common laws, constitutionalism, and what is best described as institutional cosmopolitanism. The relative importance of these legal instruments has changed over time but all three have been constantly operative, even in times of attempted national and territorial closure. All three remain present in the contemporary cosmopolitan state, understood in terms of cosmopolitan citizens, cosmopolitan sources and cosmopolitan thought. The cosmopolitan state is, moreover, the only appropriate conceptualization of the state in a time of globalization.

This book outlines the subtlety of the law of cosmopolitan states, law which has survived through periods of nationalism and which provides the working methods for the reconciliation of diverse populations. Combining law, history, political science, political philosophy, international relations, and the new logics, it demonstrates that the idea of the nation-state has failed and should yield to an understanding of the state as necessarily cosmopolitan in character.