Special Issue: The Never-Ending Reform of the EU

The latest issue of Perspectives on Federalism (Vol. 6, no. 3, 2014) is out. This is a special issue on "The Never-Ending Reform of the EU: Another Chain in the Semi-Permanent Treaty Revision Process?" Contents include:

• Roberto Castaldi & Giuseppe Martinico, The Never-Ending Reform of the EU: Another Link in the Chain of the Semi-Permanent Treaty Revision Process?
• Cristina Fasone, Eurozone, non-Eurozone and “troubled asymmetries” among national parliaments in the EU. Why and to what extent this is of concern
• Tommaso Virgili, The “Arab Spring” and the EU’s “Democracy Promotion” in Egypt: A Missed Appointment?
• Jerónimo Maillo González-Orús, A new Commission for a new era. Is the parliamentarization of the European Commission the way forward?
• Giuseppe Martinico, Four Points on the Court of Justice of the EU
• Giacomo Delledonne, The European Council after Lisbon: A review article
• Diane Fromage, National parliaments and governmental accountability in the crisis: theory and practice
• María González Pascual Eurocrisis and Regional States: New trends in the European Regional Policy and the Regions’ future
• Edoardo Bressanelli, Political Parties in the EU: What’s Next?
• Fabio Masini, The ECB: towards a monetary authority of a federal Europe
• Mario Kölling Reform options for the EU budget – first reflections on the new departure for a new EU budget

Baldegger: Das Spannungsverhältnis zwischen Staatenimmunität, diplomatischer Immunität und Menschenrechten

Mirjam Baldegger has published Das Spannungsverhältnis zwischen Staatenimmunität, diplomatischer Immunität und Menschenrechten (Nomos 2015). Here's the abstract:

Das Spannungsverhältnis zwischen staatlicher Souveränität und dem Schutz des Menschen ist ein ungelöster Brennpunkt des Völkerrechts. Es manifestiert sich u.a. bei der Ausbeutung von Hauspersonal ausländischer Missionen und Diplomaten: Dieses erhält im Gaststaat wegen der Immunität des Entsendelands und seiner Diplomaten keinen oder nur sehr lückenhaft Rechtsschutz. Das bedeutet zugleich, dass das Gastland menschenrechtliche Schutzpflichten nicht erfüllen und das Recht auf Zugang zu einem Gericht nicht sicherstellen kann.

Die Studie analysiert, wie und weshalb IGH, EGMR und UNO-Menschenrechtsausschuss im Verhältnis Staatenimmunität, diplomatische Immunität und Menschenrechte einen Vorrang der Immunitäten anerkennen und so die weitgehende Wirkungslosigkeit der Menschenrechte in Kauf nehmen. Die Autorin zieht den Schluss, dass angesichts der Völkerrechtsentwicklung ein echter Ausgleich zwischen Immunitäten und Menschenrechten erforderlich ist und entwickelt hierfür ein differenziertes Instrumentarium anhand von drei Ausgleichsansätzen: (1) Der Pflicht des Gerichtsstaats, alternative Massnahmen zu treffen, (2) der menschenrechtskonformen Auslegung der Immunitäten und des diplomatischen Rechts sowie (3) dem punktuellen Vorrang der Menschenrechte. Die Studie schlägt zudem vor, welche Ausgleichsmassnahmen (z.B. politische Demarchen, Schlichtungsstelle, Gesetzgebung gegen Ausbeutung) Gerichte vom Gaststaat konkret einfordern sollen, damit dieser die Menschenrechte trotz Respektierung der Immunitäten einhält.

Conference: The South China Sea: An International Law Perspective

On March 6, 2015, the Centre for International Law of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel will host a conference on "The South China Sea: An International Law Perspective." The program is here.

Aughey & Sari: Targeting and Detention in Non-International Armed Conflict

Sean Aughey (11KBW) & Aurel Sari (Univ. of Exeter - Law) have posted Targeting and Detention in Non-International Armed Conflict: Serdar Mohammed and the Limits of Human Rights Convergence (International Law Studies, forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

In recent years, the United Kingdom has seen a steady flow of legal challenges arising out of its involvement in the armed conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Among these, the case of Serdar Mohammed, decided by the English High Court in May 2014, is of particular interest because of its wider implications. In essence, the High Court’s judgment in Mohammed questions the existence of a legal basis under the law of armed conflict for the conduct of status-based operations in non-international armed conflicts. This article demonstrates that the restrictive approach adopted by the High Court in Mohammed is mistaken as a matter of law and undesirable as a matter of policy. In short, Mohammed drives the convergence between international human rights law and the law of armed conflict too far.

Call for Panel Proposals: International Law Weekend 2015

The American Branch of the International Law Association and the International Law Students Association have issued a call for panel proposals for International Law Weekend 2015, which will take place November 5-7, 2015, in New York City. The theme is "Global Problems, Legal Solutions: Challenges for Contemporary International Lawyers." Here's the call:

International Law Weekend 2015: Call for Panel Proposals

Deadline: March 20, 2015

In anticipation of International Law Weekend 2015 (ILW 2015) – the premier international law event of the fall season – the sponsors would like to invite you and your colleagues to submit proposals for panels, roundtables, and lectures. ILW 2015 is scheduled to be held on November 5-7, 2015, in New York City.

About ILW

ILW is sponsored and organized by the American Branch of the International Law Association (ABILA) – which welcomes new members from academia, the practicing bar, and the diplomatic world – and the International Law Students Association (ILSA). This annual conference attracts an audience of more than eight hundred academics, diplomats, members of the governmental and nongovernmental sectors, and foreign policy and law students.

Call for Proposals

The unifying theme for ILW 2015 is Global Problems, Legal Solutions: Challenges for Contemporary International Lawyers.

ILW 2015 will explore the many roles that international law plays in addressing global challenges. The aim is to provide an opportunity for discussion and debate about the ways in which international law provides fundamental tools and mechanisms to address emerging global issues. ILW 2015 will offer engaging panels on current problems and innovative solutions in both public and private international law.

The ILW Organizing Committee invites proposals to be submitted online on or before Friday, March 20, 2015 via the ILW Panel Proposal Submission Form located here.

Proposals

Panel proposals may concern any aspect of contemporary international law and practice including, but not limited to, international arbitration, international environmental law, national security, cyber law, use of force, human rights and humanitarian law, international organizations, international criminal law, international intellectual property, the law of the sea and outer space, and transnational commercial and trade law. When submitting your proposal, please identify the primary area(s) of international law that your proposed panel will address.

We also ask that you provide a brief description of the topic, and the names, titles, and affiliations of the chair and likely speakers. One of the objectives of ILW 2015 is to promote new dialogues among scholars and practicing lawyers; so all panels should include presenters with diverse experiences and perspectives.

On the submission form, you will be asked to describe what you think would be the most engaging and exciting format for your proposed program. We encourage suggestions of varied formats, such as debates, roundtables, lectures, and break-out groups, as well as the usual practice of panel presentations. Additionally, we encourage you to consider taking the necessary steps to qualify your panel for CLE credit. We hope to offer at least seven panels qualifying for CLE.

ILW 2015

ILW 2015 is scheduled to be held at 42 West 44th Street on Thursday evening, November 5, and at Fordham Law School at Lincoln Center on November 6-7, 2015. The ABILA Annual meeting will also be held during ILW 2015 at the same location. For questions regarding ILW 2015, please contact conferences@ilsa.org.

ILW Programming Committee

Chiara Giorgetti, Assistant Professor of Law, Faculty Director, LLM Program, Richmond School of Law;

Jeremy Sharpe, Chief of Investment Arbitration, Office of the Legal Adviser, U.S. Department of State;

David P. Stewart, President, ABILA, Georgetown University Law Center;

Santiago Villalpando, Acting Chief, Treaty Section, Office of Legal Affairs, United Nations;

Tessa Walker, Programs Director, ILSA.

Bradley: Customary International Law Adjudication as Common Law Adjudication

Curtis A. Bradley (Duke Univ. - Law) has posted Customary International Law Adjudication as Common Law Adjudication (in Custom's Future: International Law in a Changing World, Curtis A. Bradley ed., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

The standard view today of customary international law (CIL) is that it arises from the widespread and consistent practice of states followed out of a sense of legal obligation. Although commonly recited, this account is plagued by evidentiary, normative, and conceptual difficulties, and it has been subjected to increasing criticism in recent years. This book chapter suggests that these difficulties stem in part from the effort to formulate one conception of “CIL” that applies across all institutional contexts. This chapter posits a particular account of CIL, considered from the perspective of international adjudication. The application of CIL by an international adjudicator, this chapter suggests, is best understood in terms similar to the judicial development of the common law: that is, as an approach whereby adjudicators look to past practice but necessarily make choices about how to describe it, which baselines to apply in evaluating it, and whether and when to extend or analogize it to new situations. These choices, moreover, are shaped by assessments of state preferences as well as social and moral considerations. Unlike the standard view of CIL, this common law account recognizes a significant element of judgment and creativity in determining the content of CIL. Understanding the adjudication of CIL in this way, the chapter contends, avoids many of the difficulties surrounding the standard view of CIL.

de Wet & Kleffner: Convergence and Conflicts of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law in Military Operations

Erika de Wet (Univ. of Pretoria - Law) & Jann Kleffner (Swedish National Defence College - International Law Centre) have published Convergence and Conflicts of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law in Military Operations (Pretoria Univ. Law Press 2014). Contents include:

• Iain Scobbie, Human rights protection during armed conflict: what, when and for whom?
• Bonita Meyersfeld, A gender perspective on the relationship between human rights law and international humanitarian law
• Jann K Kleffner, The applicability of the law of armed conflict and human rights law to organised armed groups 49
• Bruce ‘Ossie’ Oswald, Interplay as regards dealing with detainees in international military operations
• Michelle Lesh, Interplay as regards conduct of hostilities
• Andrea Carcano, On the relationship between international humanitarian law and human rights law in times of belligerent occupation: not yet a coherent framework
• Marten Zwanenburg, The interplay of international humanitarian law and international human rights law in peace operations
• André R Smit, Selected aspects of applicable international human rights law and international humanitarian law in naval counter piracy operations off the east coast of Africa
• Daphna Shraga, The interplay between human rights and international humanitarian law in UN operations
• Peter M Olson, Convergence and conflicts of human rights and international humanitarian law in military operations: A NATO perspective
• James Ross, Conflicts of law: NGOs, international law, and civilian protection in wartime
• Blaise Cathcart, The legal advisor in the Canadian armed forces addressing international humanitarian law and international human rights law in military operations
• Frans Viljoen, The relationship between international human rights and humanitarian law in the African human rights system: An institutional approach
• Karin Oellers-Frahm, A regional perspective on the convergence and conflicts of human rights and international humanitarian law in military operations: The European Court of Human Rights
• Dinah Shelton, Humanitarian law in the Inter-American human rights system
• Gentian Zyberi, The jurisprudence of the International Court of Justice and international criminal courts and tribunals

New Issue: International Criminal Law Review

The latest issue of the International Criminal Law Review (Vol. 15, no. 1, 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Alette Smeulers, Maartje Weerdesteijn & Barbora Hola, The Selection of Situations by the ICC: An Empirically Based Evaluation of the OTP’s Performance
• H.J. van der Merwe, The Show Must Not Go On: Complementarity, the Due Process Thesis and Overzealous Domestic Prosecutions
• Patricia Hobbs, Contemporary Challenges in Relation to the Prosecution of Senior State Officials before the International Criminal Court
• Ahmed Samir Hassanein, Physical and Legal Inability under Article 17(3) of the Rome Statute
• Aldo Zammit Borda, How Do International Judges Approach Competing Precedent? An Analysis of the Practice of International Criminal Courts and Tribunals in Relation to Substantive Law
• Maja Munivrana Vajda, Ethnic Cleansing as Genocide – Assessing the Croatian Genocide Case before the ICJ
• Cale Davis, Political Considerations in Prosecutorial Discretion at the International Criminal Court
• Sigrid Mehring, The Judgment of the German Bundesverfassungsgericht concerning Reparations for the Victims of the Varvarin Bombing

New Issue: Revista Tribuna Internacional

The latest issue of Revista Tribuna Internacional (Vol. 3, no. 6, 2014) is out. Contents include:

• Ronald Ralf Becerra, The constitutional review of international commercial arbitral awards in Latin America and the challenges for legal certainty. Insights from Colombian jurisdiction
• Carlos Bellei Tagle, La influencia de la jurisprudencia de la Corte Internacional de Justicia en la práctica de los tribunales arbitrales del CIADI
• Bárbara Andrea Cortés Cabrera, El soft law y su aplicación en el derecho comercial internacional
• Felipe González Ampuero, Tipificación del delito de tortura en el ordenamiento jurídico chileno a la luz del Derecho Internacional de los Derechos Humanos: estado y desafíos
• Lucía Rizik Mulet, El Convenio de La Haya de 1980 sobre aspectos civiles de la sustracción internacional de menores y su aplicación en Chile: las modalidades de restitución del menor
• Alejandro Sfeir Tonsic, Cooperación judicial e integración subnacional chileno-argentina: principales logros y avances
• Luis T. Díaz Müller, El Tiempo de los tiempos: reflexiones sobre los desafíos de la sociedad contemporánea

New Issue: Revista Peruana de Derecho Internacional

The latest issue of Revista Peruana de Derecho Internacional (Vol. 64, no. 150, January-June 2014) is out. Contents include:

• Ignacio Basombrío Zender, La OEA y el desarrollo democrático
• Roberto MacLean Ugarteche, Testimonio de una defensa: mirando más allá del diferendo marítimo con Chile
• Rosa Garibaldi, La Misión de Manuel Nicolás Corpancho, 1861-1863
• Paul Duclos Parodi, Resultado equitativo conforme a derecho: el caso sobre delimitación territorial y marítima entre Nicaragua y Colombia ante la Corte Internacional de Justicia

New Issue: Revue Générale de Droit International Public

The latest issue of the Revue Générale de Droit International Public (Vol. 118, no. 4, 2014) is out. Contents include:

• Point de vue
• Serge Sur, L'inhérence en droit international
• Dossier: La crise ukainienne
• Carlo Santulli, La crise ukrainienne: position du problème
• Philippe Maddalon, La crise ukrainienne: un instrument de mesure des possibilités et des limites du droit de l'Union européenne
• Sabrina Cuendet, Les aspects énergétiques de la crise en Ukraine. Retour sur les relations énergétiques tissées avec la Russie et l'Ukraine et projection sur les conséquences des tensions survenues dans la région en 2014
• Article
• Céline Bada, Nouvelle signature des accords frontaliers entre la Fédération de Russie et l'Estonie: le droit à l'épreuve des faits

New Issue: Korean Journal of International and Comparative Law

The latest issue of the Korean Journal of International and Comparative Law (Vol. 2, no. 2, 2014) is out. Contents include:

• Tomohiko Kobayashi, Revisiting the Role of Anti-Circumvention Provisions under the wto Agreement: Lessons for East Asia
• Francesco Seatzu, The Legal Mandates of the CABEI and of the CAF as Agents of Economic Growth in Latin America
• Seokwoo Lee, The Views of Korean International Law Scholars Regarding the 2012 Supreme Court Decisions on Compensation for Forced Labor

Land: Participatory Fact-Finding

Molly K. Land (Univ. of Connecticut - Law) has posted Participatory Fact-Finding: Developing New Directions for Human Rights Investigations Through New Technologies (in The Future of Human Rights Fact-Finding, Philip Alston & Sarah Knuckey eds., forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

This chapter considers the way in which broader participation in human rights fact-finding, enabled by the introduction of new technologies, will change the nature of fact-finding itself. Using the example of a participatory mapping project called Map Kibera, the chapter argues that new technologies will change human rights fact-finding by providing opportunities for ordinary individuals to investigate the human rights issues that affect them. Those who were formerly the ‘subjects’ of human rights investigations now have the potential to be agents in their own right. This ‘participatory fact-finding’ may not be as effective in ‘naming and shaming’ states and companies that violate human rights because the absence of the imprimatur of an established organization may render the information collected vulnerable to critique. At the same time, new and more participatory techniques of investigation will be better suited to other forms of accountability. Participatory fact-finding has the potential to be fact-finding as empowerment — the collection of information and documentation of facts as means for empowering those affected by abuses to advocate for their change. Participatory fact-finding will also be more effective in documenting violations of the positive obligation to fulfill rights than traditional fact-finding methods because they offer opportunities for gathering more data than is possible through victim and witness interviewing.

By supporting local participation, new technologies provide an opportunity to bring the practice of human rights fact-finding into greater alignment with human rights principles. Utilizing new technologies to achieve greater participation in human rights fact-finding will allow human rights organizations to ‘practice what they preach’ — to integrate the principle of participation into their own work in addition to recommending it to states and other duty-bearers. There is and will continue to be a significant need for the kind of fact-finding done by large and established international human rights organizations. Yet documentation projects involving citizens have the potential to be a new kind of fact-finding — to look and function differently than fact-finding as generally practiced by the major international non-governmental organizations and the United Nations. By opening up who can participate in investigation, new technologies will not replace established methodologies, but will instead broaden our understanding of what counts as human rights documentation and the purposes such investigations serve.

New Issue: Journal of Conflict Resolution

The latest issue of the Journal of Conflict Resolution (Vol. 59, no. 2, March 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Michael Tiernay, Killing Kony: Leadership Change and Civil War Termination
• Jonathan Renshon & Arthur Spirling, Modeling “Effectiveness” in International Relations
• Rachel L. Wellhausen, Investor–State Disputes: When Can Governments Break Contracts?
• Thomas König & Daniel Finke, Legislative Governance in Times of International Terrorism
• Man Yan Eng & Johannes Urpelainen, The Domestic Sources of Donor Credibility: When and How Can Domestic Interest Groups Improve the Effectiveness of Threats and Promises?
• Peter F. Nardulli, Buddy Peyton, & Joseph Bajjalieh, Climate Change and Civil Unrest: The Impact of Rapid-onset Disasters
• J. Michael Greig, Nipping Them in the Bud: The Onset of Mediation in Low-intensity Civil Conflicts

Burney: European Court of Human Rights Upholds France’s Ban on the Full-Face Veil

Uzma S. Burney has posted an ASIL Insight on European Court of Human Rights Upholds France’s Ban on the Full-Face Veil.

McKibben: State Strategies in International Bargaining

Heather Elko McKibben (Univ. of California, Davis - Political Science) has published State Strategies in International Bargaining: Play by the Rules or Change Them? (Cambridge Univ. Press 2015). Here's the abstract:

Bargaining between states in the international system is governed by rules, which shape and constrain their bargaining behavior. However, these rules can be changed. When, why, and how do states bargain differently? Drawing on original qualitative and quantitative evidence, this book demonstrates how the rules of the game influence the cooperative or coercive nature of the strategies adopted by all states in a negotiation. These effects influence each state's incentives regarding whether to play by the rules or to change them. Examining these incentives, as well as the conditions under which states can act on them, McKibben explains the wide variation in states' bargaining strategies. Several bargaining interactions are analyzed, including decision-making in the European Union, multilateral trade negotiations, climate change negotiations, and negotiations over the future status of Kosovo. This book provides a rich understanding of the nuances of states' behavior in international bargaining processes.

Conference: The Role of Legal Advisers In International Law

On February 26, 2015, the British Institute of International and Comparative Law and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will co-host a conference on "The Role of Legal Advisers in International Law." The program is here. Here's the idea:

The conference will bring together current and former legal advisers, from various countries and a variety of legal and political systems, to discuss a number of issues critical to the role of the Government Legal Adviser, including: the functions of the legal adviser, the organisation and context for legal adviser's work, communication and contact between legal advisers from various countries and the role of public outreach. The conference will also include a roundtable on the space occupied by the legal adviser between law and politics.

Workshop: The EU and International Dispute Settlement

On February 19-20, 2015, the ESIL Interest Group on the EU as a Global Actor, the Centre for the Law of EU External Relations (CLEER), and the European University Institute will hold a joint workshop on "The EU and International Dispute Settlement," at EUI. The program is here. Here's the idea:

The EU as a global actor is ever more involved in international treaty-making and in the work of international organisations. Its external action is no longer confined to international trade, or even more broadly economic affairs. Its participation in international law-making now ranges from trade to human rights, from investment protection to environmental matters, immigration, and much more. In tandem with this growing EU role, international dispute settlement is marked by the proliferation ofinternational courts and tribunals. As a consequence, questions arise, inter alia, as to the role played by the EU in this process, the position of the EU and its Member States with regard to participation in IDS, the implications of international rulings within the European legal order, the European Court of Justice as constitutional court in dialogue/competing with other international judicial bodies, and the impact of IDS developments on private parties. This workshop seeks to examine the connections between the EU and international dispute settlement. The discussions and outcome will serve as the basis for an edited volume. Rather than taking a sectoral approach, this workshop aims at a focus on horizontal / cross-cutting themes, which will allow us to combine insights from different sectors (e.g. trade, investment, human rights, the environment, security, immigration).

New Issue: Journal on the Use of Force and International Law

The latest issue of the Journal on the Use of Force and International Law (Vol. 1, no. 2, 2014) is out. Contents include:

• Editorial Comment
• Christian Henderson, The Use of Force and Islamic State
• Articles
• Agatha Verdebout, The Contemporary Discourse on the Use of Force in the Nineteenth Century: A Diachronic and Critical Analysis
• Arman Sarvarian, The Lawfulness of a Use of Force upon Nuclear Facilities in Self-Defence
• Marie Aronsson, Remote Law-Making? American Drone Strikes and the Development of Jus Ad Bellum
• Helen McDermott, Extraterritorial Kidnapping and the Rules on Interstate Force

New Volume: Anuario Mexicano de Derecho Internacional

The latest volume of the Anuario Mexicano de Derecho Internacional (Vol. 15, 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Doctrina
• Virginia Petrova GeorgievaLa “judicialización”: una nueva característica del sistema jurídico internacional
• Luciano Pezzano, Control de constitucionalidad de los actos de los órganos de las Naciones Unidas: una aproximación desde la perspectiva de la Corte Internacional de Justicia
• Carlos Bellei Tagle, ¿Existen aún disputas internacionales no-justiciables en virtud de su carácter político? La práctica de la Corte Internacional de Justicia
• Wu Xiaodan, China’s Lunar Exploration and Utilization: Positive Energy for International Law or Not?
• David J. Cantor & Diana Trimiño Mora, ¿Una solución simple para los refugiados que huyen de la guerra? La definición ampliada de América Latina y su relación con el derecho internacional humanitario
• Jânia Maria Lopes Saldanha & Márcio Morais Brum, A margem nacional de apreciação e sua (in)aplicação pela Corte Interamericana de Direitos Humanos em matéria de anistia: uma figura hermenêutica a serviço do pluralismo ordenado?
• Valerio de Oliveira Mazzuoli & Dilton Ribeiro, The Japanese Legal System and the Pro Homine Principle in Human Rights Treaties
• Shirley Llain Arenilla, Violations to the Principle of Non-Refoulement Under the Asylum Policy of the United States
• M. Belén Olmos Giupponi & Martha C. Paz, The Implementation of the Human Right to Water in Argentina and Colombia
• Nuria González Martín, International Parental Child Abduction and Mediation
• Fernando Arlettaz, La nacionalidad en el derecho internacional americano
• Juan Pablo Hugues Arthur, The Legal Value of Prior Steps to Arbitration in International Law of Foreign Investment: Two (Different?) Approaches, One Outcome

New Issue: Review of International Organizations

The latest issue of the Review of International Organizations (Vol. 10, no. 1, March 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Amanda Murdie & Dursun Peksen, Women’s rights INGO shaming and the government respect for women’s rights
• Hylke Dijkstra, Shadow bureaucracies and the unilateral control of international secretariats: Insights from UN peacekeeping
• Stefanie Bailer & Florian Weiler, A political economy of positions in climate change negotiations: Economic, structural, domestic, and strategic explanations
• Juan C. Duque, Michael Jetter, & Santiago Sosa, UN interventions: The role of geography

New Volume: Canadian Yearbook of International Law

The latest volume of the Canadian Yearbook of International Law (Vol. 51, 2013) is out. Contents include:

• Articles
• Gus van Harten, The Canada-China FIPPA: Its Uniqueness and Non-Reciprocity
• Elvira Domínguez-Redondo & Edward R. McMahon, More Honey Than Vinegar: Peer Review as a Middle Ground between Universalism and National Sovereignty
• Philippe Pelletier, La révision de 2012 de l'Accord de l'OMC sur les marchés publics: Son contexte et les dimensions de son champ d'application
• Patrick C.R. Terry & Karen S. Openshaw, Nuclear Non-Proliferation and "Preventive Self-Defence": Why Attacking Iran Would Be Illegal
• Maureen Irish, Renewable Energy and Trade: Interpreting against Fragmentation
• Notes and Comments
• Jure Vidmar, The Scottish Independence Referendum in an International Context
• Alain-Guy Tachou-Sipowo, Does International Criminal Law Create Humanitarian Law Obligations? The Case of Exclusively Non-State Armed Conflict under the Rome Statute

New Issue: Global Constitutionalism

The latest issue of Global Constitutionalism (Vol. 4, no. 1, March 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Jeffrey L. Dunoff, Antje Wiener, Mattias Kumm, Anthony F. Lang, Jr., & James Tully, Hard times: Progress narratives, historical contingency and the fate of global constitutionalism
• Luis Cabrera, Diversity and cosmopolitan democracy: Avoiding global democratic relativism
• Niels Petersen, Balancing and judicial self-empowerment: A case study on the rise of balancing in the jurisprudence of the German Federal Constitutional Court
• Mathias Risse, Taking up space on earth: Theorizing territorial rights, the justification of states and immigration from a global standpoint
• Po Jen Yap, The conundrum of unconstitutional constitutional amendments

Reid: Balancing Human Rights, Environmental Protection and International Trade

Emily Reid (Univ. of Southampton - Law) has published Balancing Human Rights, Environmental Protection and International Trade: Lessons from the EU Experience (Hart Publishing 2015). Here's the abstract:

This book explores the means by which economic liberalisation can be reconciled with human rights and environmental protection in the regulation of international trade. It is primarily concerned with identifying the lessons the international community can learn, specifically in the context of the WTO, from decades of European Community and Union experience in facing this question. The book demonstrates first that it is possible to reconcile the pursuit of economic and non-economic interests, that the EU has found a mechanism by which to do so, and that the application of the principle of proportionality is fundamental to the realisation of this. It is argued that the EU approach can be characterised as a practical application of the principle of sustainable development. Secondly, from the analysis of the EU experience, this book identifies fundamental conditions crucial to achieving this 'reconciliation'. Thirdly, the book explores the implications of lessons from the EU experience for the international Community. In so doing it assesses both the potential and limits of the existing international regulatory framework for such reconciliation. The book develops a deeper understanding of the inter-relationship between the legal regulation of economic and non-economic development, adding clarity to the debate in a controversial area. It argues that a more holistic approach to the consideration of 'development', encompassing economic and non-economic concerns - 'sustainable' development - is not only desirable in principle but realisable in practice.

Schmitt: The Notion of ‘Objects’ During Cyber Operations

Michael N. Schmitt (U.S. Naval War College - Law) has posted The Notion of ‘Objects’ During Cyber Operations: A Riposte in Defence of Interpretive and Applicative Precision (Israel Law Review, Vol. 48, pp. 81-109, 2015). Here's the abstract:

International humanitarian law protects civilian objects from attack. It also requires that any collateral damage to them be considered in the proportionality analysis and when considering precautions in attack designed to minimize harm to civilians. This article addresses the question of whether data are objects in the IHL sense. Based on the work underlying the Tallinn Manual on the International Law Applicable to Cyber Warfare, it argues that although this may be the case in the future, as of 2014 IHL has not developed to this point.

De Pooter: Le droit international face aux pandémies

Hélène De Pooter has published Le droit international face aux pandémies : vers un système de sécurité sanitaire collective ? (Pedone 2015). Here's the abstract:

Face aux pandémies, le droit international s’organise-t-il sous la forme d’un « système de sécurité sanitaire collective » (abandon des mesures unilatérales excessives, garantie offerte par la collectivité par le biais d’une action commune, sauvegarde du droit des états d’adopter les mesures individuelles nécessaires) ?

L’étude des instruments adoptés au sein de l’OMS (règlement sanitaire international et cadre de préparation en cas de grippe pandémique), des actes unilatéraux de l’ONU (résolutions de l’Assemblée générale, du Conseil de sécurité et du Conseil économique et social), de la coopération entre organisations intergouvernementales (GLEWS, GF-TADs, OFFLU) et des accords de l’OMC (GATT, accord SPS et accord sur les ADPIC) révèle que chaque segment de la question reçoit une réponse positive.

Pourtant, on ne peut ignorer le caractère largement imparfait du résultat de la lutte contre les pandémies. S’il existe indéniablement des indices en faveur de la thèse selon laquelle un système de sécurité sanitaire collective existe formellement, le droit international face aux pandémies se caractérise matériellement par un agglomérat de fragments aux antipodes d’un édifice juridique satisfaisant.

Gündoğdu: Rightlessness in an Age of Rights

Ayten Gündoğdu (Barnard College - Political Science) has published Rightlessness in an Age of Rights (Oxford Univ. Press 2015). Here's the abstract:

There have been remarkable developments in the field of human rights in the past few decades. Still, millions of asylum-seekers, refugees, and undocumented immigrants continue to find it challenging to access human rights. In this book, Ayten Gündoğdu builds on Hannah Arendt's analysis of statelessness and argues that these challenges reveal the perplexities of human rights.

Human rights promise equal personhood regardless of citizenship status, yet their existing formulations are tied to the principle of territorial sovereignty. This situation leaves various categories of migrants in a condition of "rightlessness," with a very precarious legal, political, and human standing. Gündoğdu examines this problem in the context of immigration detention, deportation, and refugee camps. Critical of the existing system of human rights without seeing it as a dead end, she argues for the need to pay closer attention to the political practices of migrants who challenge their condition of rightlessness and propose new understandings of human rights.

What arises from this critical reflection on human rights is also a novel reading of Arendt, one that offers refreshing insights into various dimensions of her political thought, including her account of the human condition, "the social question," and "the right to have rights." Rightlessness in an Age of Rights is a valuable addition to the literature on Hannah Arendt and a vital way of rethinking human rights as they relate to contemporary issues of immigration.

Simonet: Le Traité sur le commerce des armes

Loïc Simonet (OSCE) has published Le Traité sur le commerce des armes (Pedone 2015) Here's the abstract:

Instrument novateur et inédit, lointain aboutissement des efforts de la Société des Nations entre les deux Guerres mondiales, le Traité sur le commerce des armes a été adopté « à l’arraché » par l’Assemblée générale des Nations Unies le 2 avril 2013 et est entré en vigueur le 24 décembre 2014. Conclu au terme de dix-sept ans de réflexion et de négociation, il a constitué pour la communauté internationale l’un des plus importants chantiers juridiques de ce début de siècle.

Cet ouvrage inscrit le TCA dans le contexte du commerce mondial des armes, dont il livre les principaux paramètres. Il étudie la genèse du nouveau traité et retrace les rebondissements qui ont précédé son adoption. Surtout, il constitue pour le juriste, pour les acteurs de la défense et pour les industriels de l’armement un outil précieux, en analysant rigoureusement les dispositions du TCA et leurs implications, et en les comparant avec les conventions existantes qui régissent le contrôle des armements et l’interdiction de certaines armes.

Rapidement devenu opérationnel, le traité sur le commerce des armes permettra-t-il d’atteindre les objectifs fixés par ses promoteurs : contribuer à la paix, la sécurité et la stabilité, réduire la souffrance humaine et promouvoir la coopération, la transparence et la confiance entre les États ? Parviendra-t-il à fédérer l’Inde et la Russie, qui campent sur leur hostilité, la Chine, qui demeure dans l’attentisme, et les Etats-Unis, dont la signature tardive n’implique nullement qu’ils ratifieront le TCA ? Exercera-t-il, en définitive, l’influence espérée sur le commerce des armes ?

Telles sont aussi les questions auxquelles ce livre s’attache à répondre, anticipant ainsi les années à venir.

Wellhausen: The Shield of Nationality: When Governments Break Contracts with Foreign Firms

Rachel L. Wellhausen (Univ. of Texas, Austin - Government) has published The Shield of Nationality: When Governments Break Contracts with Foreign Firms (Cambridge Univ. Press 2015). Here's the abstract:

There is extraordinary variation in how governments treat multinational corporations in emerging economies; in fact, governments around the world have nationalized or eaten away at the value of foreign-owned property in violation of international treaties. This even occurs in poor countries, where governments are expected to, at a minimum, respect the contracts they make with foreign firms lest foreign capital flee. In The Shield of Nationality, Rachel Wellhausen introduces foreign-firm nationality as a key determinant of firms' responses to government breaches of contract. Firms of the same nationality are likely to see a compatriot's broken contract as a forewarning of their own problems, leading them to take flight or fight. In contrast, firms of other nationalities are likely to meet the broken contract with apparent indifference. Evidence includes quantitative analysis and case studies that draw on field research in Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania.

Ohlin: The Assault on International Law

Jens David Ohlin (Cornell Univ. - Law) has published The Assault on International Law (Oxford Univ. Press 2015). Here's the abstract:

International law presents a conceptual riddle. Why comply with it when there is no world government to enforce it? The United States has a long history of skepticism towards international law, but 9/11 ushered in a particularly virulent phase of American exceptionalism, as the US drifted away from international institutions and conventions.

Although American politicians and their legal advisors are often the public face of this attack, the root of this movement is a coordinated and deliberate attack by law professors hostile to its philosophical foundations, including Eric Posner, Jack Goldsmith, Adrian Vermeule, and John Yoo. In a series of influential writings, they have claimed that since states are motivated primarily by self-interest, compliance with international law is nothing more than high-minded talk. These abstract arguments provide a foundation for dangerous legal conclusions: that international law is largely irrelevant to determining how and when terrorists can be captured or killed; that the US President alone should be directing the War on Terror without significant input from Congress or the judiciary; that US courts should not hear lawsuits alleging violations of international law; and that the US should block any international criminal court with jurisdiction over Americans. These polemical accounts have ultimately triggered America's pernicious withdrawal from international cooperation.

In The Assault on International Law, Jens David Ohlin exposes the mistaken assumptions of these "New Realists," in particular their impoverished utilization of rational choice theory. In contrast, he provides an alternate vision of international law based on an innovative theory of human rationality. According to Ohlin, rationality requires that agents follow through on their plans and commitments even when faced with opportunities for defection, as long as the original plan was beneficial for the agent. Seen in the light of this planning theory of rational agency, international law is the product of nation-states cooperating to escape a brutish State of Nature-a result that is not only legally binding but also in each state's self-interest.