Call for Papers: Dreaming of the International Rule of Law – A History of International Courts and Tribunals

The International Group on the History of International Law of the European Society of International Law has issued a call for papers for a workshop to be held on the occasion of ESIL's 11th Annual Conference, September 10-12, 2015, in Oslo. The theme is: "Dreaming of the International Rule of Law – A History of International Courts and Tribunals." Here's the call:

Dreaming of the International Rule of Law – A History of International Courts and Tribunals

On the occasion of The ESIL 11th Annual Conference, to be held in Oslo, 10 – 12 September 2015. The Judicialization of International Law – A Mixed Blessing? The ESIL’s interest group on the History of International Law invites submissions, in English or French.

For all the current anxiety surrounding the judicialization of international politics, the contemporary growth of international courts and tribunals, which shows the continuing appeal of the “domestic analogy” in shaping the intellectual imagination of the discipline, may arguably be considered a dream made true for the long-standing aspirations of professional relevance of international lawyers. The promise of a more perfected international rule of law is among the factors that account for the fact that the establishment of new international courts and tribunals has accompanied the proliferation of international institutions and the diversification of international law for the last 25 years’-long post-cold war period.

Against this background, submissions are welcomed in two interdependent categories. On the first hand, the IGHIL invites submissions addressed to examine the histories of the creation of “successful” international courts and tribunals, in the sense of institutionally established and operative ones. On the other, the IGHIL welcomes submissions addressed to examine the histories of short-lived, aborted or failed international courts and tribunals as well as the history of projects for international courts of tribunals that remained “dead letter” and/or are still “in nuce".

Authors are invited to consider factors of failure/success in the creation, disappearance or non- emergence of international courts and tribunals in light of their legitimacy of origin and exercise as well as other factors. These may include, but are not limited to e.g. the role of particularly inspirational figures or social movements, the contextual-historical relevance of different international legal philosophies or the impact of context-breaking events in the history of international law.

Each submission should include:

– An abstract of no more than 400 words

– The intended language of presentation

– A short curriculum vitae containing the author’s name, institutional affiliation, contact information and e-mail address.

Applications should be submitted to both Ignacio de la Rasilla del Moral and Randall Lesaffer by 15th February 2015. All applicants will be notified of the outcome of the selection process by 15th March 2015.

Selection will be based on scholarly merit and with regard to producing an engaging workshop, without prejudice to gender, seniority, language or geographical location. Please note that the ESIL Interest Group on the History of International Law is unable to provide funds to cover the conference registration fee or related transport and accommodation costs.