New Issue: Journal of Conflict Resolution

The latest issue of the Journal of Conflict Resolution (Vol. 59, no. 7, October 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Yuri M. Zhukov, Population Resettlement in War: Theory and Evidence from Soviet Archives
• Sarah Brockhoff, Tim Krieger, & Daniel Meierrieks, Great Expectations and Hard Times: The (Nontrivial) Impact of Education on Domestic Terrorism
• Jeffrey A. Friedman, Using Power Laws to Estimate Conflict Size
• Barbara F. Walter, Why Bad Governance Leads to Repeat Civil War
• Hans-Theo Normann & Holger A. Rau, Simultaneous and Sequential Contributions to Step-level Public Goods: One versus Two Provision Levels
• Dan Reiter, The Positivist Study of Gender and International Relations
• Manuel Vogt, Nils-Christian Bormann, Seraina Rüegger, Lars-Erik Cederman, Philipp Hunziker, & Luc Girardin, Integrating Data on Ethnicity, Geography, and Conflict: The Ethnic Power Relations Data Set Family

Conference: 11th Annual Conference of the European Society of International Law (Reminder)

The European Society of International Law's 11th Annual Conference will take place September 10-12, 2015, in Oslo, and will be hosted by the PluriCourts Centre for the Study of the Legitimate Roles of the Judiciary in the Global Order at the University of Oslo. The theme is: "The Judicialization of International Law – A Mixed Blessing?" The program is here. Selected sessions of the conference will be streamed here. The Society's interest groups will hold a number of events and business meetings immediately prior to and during the conference, and these are detailed here.

Call for Abstracts: The Environment in Court - Environmental Protection in National and International Courts, Tribunals, and Compliance Mechanisms

A call for abstracts has been issued for the 14th Annual Colloquium of the IUCN Academy of Environmental Law, which will be hosted by PluriCourts, Center of Excellence for the Study of the Legitimacy of International Courts and Tribunals at the University of Oslo, on June 20-25, 2016. The theme is: "The Environment in Court - Environmental Protection in National and International Courts, Tribunals, and Compliance Mechanisms." The call is here.

Belser, Fang-Bär, Massüger, & Oleschak Pillai: States Falling Apart? Secessionist and Autonomy Movements in Europe

Eva Maria Belser, Alexandra Fang-Bär, Nina Massüger, & Rekha Oleschak Pillai have published States Falling Apart? Secessionist and Autonomy Movements in Europe (Stämpfli Verlag 2015). Here's the abstract:

An increasing number of European countries are being faced with demands for greater autonomy or independence from regional groups. The legitimacy of nation states in Europe is thus being called into question not only by the forces of globalization and Europeanization from above, but also by growing pressure to recognize the autonomous or independent status of regional groups from below. From Scotland to Catalonia, from Flanders to South Tyrol, the movements vary in their intensity and demands, yet also have many commonalities. This book constitutes a compilation of papers presented at the international Conference «States Falling Apart? Secessionist and Autonomy Movements in Europe» at the University of Fribourg in 2013 and is a timely addition to the literature on secession, autonomy and federalism. With theoretical contributions and case studies, it presents a wide range of opinions and facts on these issues.

Wei: Settlements of Trade Disputes between China and Latin American Countries

Dan Wei has published Settlements of Trade Disputes between China and Latin American Countries (Springer 2015). Contents include:

• Welber Barral, Brazil and China: Trade in the Twenty-First Century
• Dan Wei, The Use of Trade Defense: Some Considerations for Brazil-China Bilateral Trade Relationship
• Cynthia Kramer, Brazilian Trade Remedies Practice Against China
• Luiz Eduardo Salles, Navigating Brazil’s New Antidumping Regulations: Acceleration, Codification, Proceduralization
• Leonor Cordovil & Aline de Carvalho, Antidumping, Public Interest and the Chinese Challenge
• Luciana Maria Oliveira, Improving the Effectiveness of the DSB of the WTO and the Accession Process for the New Members: The Case of China
• Daniela Gómez-Altamirano, China–Mexico Trade Disputes: Fear of Competition?
• Alberto do Amaral Júnior, Vera Thorstensen, & Thiago R.S.M. Nogueira, BRICS in the World Trading System Emerging Economies in the WTO Dispute Settlement System
• Cecilia Fresnedo Aguirre, Settlement of Trade Disputes Between China and Latin America: A Uruguayan Perspective

Call for Papers: Intersections in International Cultural Heritage Law

A call for papers has been issued for a conference on "Intersections in International Cultural Heritage Law," to be hosted by Georgetown University Law Center on March 29, 2016. The call is here.

New Issue: International Studies Quarterly

The latest issue of the International Studies Quarterly (Vol. 59, no. 3, September 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Steven Liao & Daniel McDowell, Redback Rising: China's Bilateral Swap Agreements and Renminbi Internationalization
• Robert A. Galantucci, The Repercussions of Realignment: United States–China Interdependence and Exchange Rate Politics
• Andrew Phillips & J. C. Sharman, Explaining Durable Diversity in International Systems: State, Company, and Empire in the Indian Ocean
• Christian Bueger & Frank Gadinger, The Play of International Practice
• David B. Carter, The Compellence Dilemma: International Disputes with Violent Groups
• Daniel Stevens, War and Elections
• Kyle Haynes, Decline and Devolution: The Sources of Strategic Military Retrenchment
• Kyle Beardsley, Kristian Skrede Gleditsch & Nigel Lo, Roving Bandits? The Geographical Evolution of African Armed Conflicts
• Curtis Bell & Scott Wolford, Oil Discoveries, Shifting Power, and Civil Conflict
• Judith G. Kelley & Jon C.W. Pevehouse, An Opportunity Cost Theory of US Treaty Behavior
• Vincent Arel-Bundock, James Atkinson & Rachel Augustine Potter, The Limits of Foreign Aid Diplomacy: How Bureaucratic Design Shapes Aid Distribution
• Matthew DiGiuseppe & Patrick E. Shea, Sovereign Credit and the Fate of Leaders: Reassessing the “Democratic Advantage”
• Abel Escribà-Folch, Covadonga Meseguer and Joseph Wright, Remittances and Democratization
• Sarah M. Brooks, Raphael Cunha & Layna Mosley, Categories, Creditworthiness, and Contagion: How Investors' Shortcuts Affect Sovereign Debt Markets
• Kyung Joon Han, When Will Left-Wing Governments Introduce Liberal Migration Policies? An Implication of Power Resources Theory
• Asif Efrat, David Leblang, Steven Liao & Sonal S. Pandya, Babies across Borders: The Political Economy of International Child Adoption

Kleinheisterkamp: Investment Treaty Law and the Fear for Sovereignty: Transnational Challenges and Solutions

Jan Kleinheisterkamp (London School of Economics - Law) has published Investment Treaty Law and the Fear for Sovereignty: Transnational Challenges and Solutions (Modern Law Review, Vol. 78, no. 5, pp. 793–825, September 2015). Here's the abstract:

This article addresses the vagueness, and the interpretative challenges associated with, international investment agreements (IIAs) and develops a new normative framework for interpreting these treaties. It focuses on the historical embedding of investment protection as a means of facilitating economic development as well as upon its synthetic public law nature. The analysis shows that a teleological approach to interpretation imposes boundaries on the meaning of substantive IIA provisions. The article then elaborates how the transnational dimension of IIAs provides a benchmark, which is the level of protection offered to economic actors against interference by the state in countries with the highest rule of law standards. The article then shows how the resulting challenges of comparative public law could be addressed through the methodology of re- and pre-statement of transnational uniform ‘principles’: sophisticated and detailed rules striking the proper balance between private economic interests and the public regulatory interest, so as to provide more legal certainty for both investors and host states.

Adam: Die Strafbarkeit juristischer Personen im Völkerstrafrecht

Jendrik Adam has published Die Strafbarkeit juristischer Personen im Völkerstrafrecht (Nomos 2015). Here's the abstract:

Die Strafbarkeit juristischer Personen sollte nach Völkerstrafrecht möglich sein, weil sie in Völkerrechtsverbrechen verwickelt sind, aber – wie die Historie des Völkerstrafrechts zeigt – keine ausreichenden Instrumente zur Sanktionierung existieren. Auch jenseits des Strafrechts untersuchte zwischenstaatliche und nationale Alternativen zur Sanktionierung vermögen das Bedürfnis nach einer solchen Strafbarkeit nicht befriedigen.

Der Autor weist nach, dass eine Sanktionierung juristischer Personen als allgemeiner Rechtsgrundsatz im Völkerrecht existiert. Als Beleg dafür wurden u.a. 47 nationale Rechtssystemen untersucht. Die Vereinbarkeit der Strafbarkeit juristischer Personen mit dem Völkerstrafrecht wird schließlich anhand der Handlungs-, Schuld- und Straffähigkeit sowie anhand des Komplementaritätsprinzip diskutiert und gelöst. Abschließend entwickelt der Autor ein Strafbarkeitsmodell, welches insbesondere auf der Zurechnungstheorie basiert und ins Römische Statut integriert werden kann.

Kassoti: The Juridical Nature of Unilateral Acts of States in International Law

Eva Kassoti (Hague Univ. of Applied Sciences) has published The Juridical Nature of Unilateral Acts of States in International Law (Brill | Nijhoff 2015). Here's the abstract:

In The Juridical Nature of Unilateral Acts of States in International Law Eva Kassoti explores the question of the legal nature of unilateral acts by focusing on their essential characteristics, namely unilateralism and the manifest intention to be bound. By analysing the legal and factual context surrounding the making of unilateral acts, this volume offers a list of indicators of the elements of unilateralism and manifest intention that will facilitate the determination of the existence of a unilateral juridical act in practice. Kassoti explores the legal nature of unilateral acts from the viewpoint of the theory of international juridical acts and thus, attests to the validity of this theory as a comprehensive framework for the analysis of all juridical acts in international law.

New Blog: EFILA Blog

The European Federation for Investment Law and Arbitration has established a new blog, appropriately titled the EFILA Blog. Here's the idea:

Since its establishment last year, the European Federation for Investment Law and Arbitration (EFILA) has developed into a well-known and highly regarded think-tank for the promotion of the knowledge of all aspects of EU and international investment law, including arbitration, at the European level.

EFILA endeavours to facilitate a meaningful exchange of views on relevant and timely issues vital to the development of the European internal market, in order to contribute to a more favourable investment climate in Europe and beyond.

To this end, EFILA developed a Blog platform designed to focus on the present challenges and debates that pertain to the field of international (investment) law and arbitration, EU law and public policy, as well as the dynamics of these multiple legal, political and economic spheres. The Blog will feature opinions and cover the latest developments in this field, on a weekly basis, written by eminent professionals and academics from around the world.

Furthermore, the Blog is intended to offer a common space that fosters dialogue between specialists of different views in an effective and user-friendly manner, allowing discussions to move beyond the stalemate of isolated monologues that fail to truly address the salient issues of the moment. Therefore, the Blog is meant to provide a balanced view that attempts to avoid any hegemonic assumptions.

The Blog invites guest contributors with the relevant expertise to submit their articles for the Blog.

Prof. Loukas Mistelis, Editor-in-Chief
On behalf of the EFILA Blog Editorial Board

New Issue: Human Rights Law Review

The latest issue of the Human Rights Law Review (Vol. 15, no. 3, September 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Lucy Richardson, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (and Beyond) in the UN Human Rights Council
• Katrien Meuwissen, NHRIs and the State: New and Independent Actors in the Multi-layered Human Rights System?
• Louise Halleskov Storgaard, EU Law Autonomy versus European Fundamental Rights Protection—On Opinion 2/13 on EU Accession to the ECHR
• Fiona de Londras & Kanstantsin Dzehtsiarou, Managing Judicial Innovation in the European Court of Human Rights
• Merris Amos, The Second Division in Human Rights Adjudication: Social Rights Claims under the Human Rights Act 1998
• Chiara Cosentino, Safe and Legal Abortion: An Emerging Human Right? The Long-lasting Dispute with State Sovereignty in ECHR Jurisprudence
• Léon Poffé, Towards a New United Nations Human Rights Convention for Older Persons?

Alkatout: The Legality of Targeted Killings in View of Direct Participation in Hostilities

Josef Alkatout has published The Legality of Targeted Killings in View of Direct Participation in Hostilities (Duncker & Humblot 2015). Here's the abstract:

In today's asymmetric armed conflicts, military agents carry out targeted killings against civilians that »take a direct part in the hostilities«. This book defines such participation for the purposes of international humanitarian, criminal and human rights law. Additionally, the general framework of the law of war is revisited, in particular under the currently frequent scenario of non-international armed conflicts. Treaty requirements for the recognition of non-state actors (degree of collectivity) are addressed and the legal ethics of a strict status-based approach in international law (combatants/civilians) is opined on. The study at hand analyzes the repertory of applicable legal texts and their authentic versions in the different official languages. It discloses existing incoherencies and gives an overview of their implementation into the national legislation of several countries. The research closes with a fictional case study. Graphs and figures are used for illustration purposes throughout the document.

Direk: Security Detention in International Territorial Administrations: Kosovo, East Timor, and Iraq

Omer Faruk Direk (Kocaeli Univ. - Law) has published Security Detention in International Territorial Administrations: Kosovo, East Timor, and Iraq (Brill | Nijhoff 2015). Here's the abstract:

What happens after a governing body is ousted during the course of armed conflict? In some cases, international organizations like the United Nations will appoint other States or itself to administer the transition of the post-conflict State to a place of lasting peace. In practice, however, this mission is hardly linear and becomes further complicated when these administrations are faced with threats to the fragile peace.

Security Detention in International Territorial Administrations examines the legal and policy questions surrounding the behavior of these post-conflict administrations. This includes discussion about apportionment of responsibility in peace support operations, norm conflict issues in UN Security Council resolutions, and requirements of international human rights law in the fulfillment of these missions. The discussion concludes with a survey of security detention practices in three recent post-conflict administrations in Kosovo, East Timor, and Iraq.

New Issue: Netherlands International Law Review

The latest issue of the Netherlands International Law Review (Vol. 62, no. 2, July 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Special Issue: Srebrenica, twenty years later
• Cedric Ryngaert & Nico Schrijver, Lessons Learned from the Srebrenica Massacre: From UN Peacekeeping Reform to Legal Responsibility
• Harmen van der Wilt, Srebrenica: On Joint Criminal Enterprise, Aiding and Abetting and Command Responsibility
• Kimberley N. Trapp, Of Dissonance and Silence; State Responsibility in the Bosnia Genocide Case
• Heike Krieger, Addressing the Accountability Gap in Peacekeeping: Law-Making by Domestic Courts As a Way to Avoid UN Reform?
• Paolo Palchetti, Attributing the Conduct of Dutchbat in Srebrenica: the 2014 Judgment of the District Court in the Mothers of Srebrenica Case
• Larissa van den Herik, Accountability Through Fact-Finding: Appraising Inquiry in the Context of Srebrenica
• Kirsten Schmalenbach, Preserving the Gordian Knot: UN Legal Accountability in the Aftermath of Srebrenica

New Issue: La Comunità Internazionale

The latest issue of La Comunità Internazionale (Vol. 70, no. 2, 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Interventi
• Franco Frattini, The Yalta Treaty seen from the perspective of today’s changing world
• Articoli e Saggi
• Antonino Ali, La risposta della Comunità internazionale al fenomeno dei foreign terrorist fighters
• Osservatorio Diritti Umani
• Giulia Vicini, Regolamento Dublino e principio di non-refoulement, the neverending story: il caso Tarakhel c. Svizzera
• Osservatorio Europeo
• Valeria Di Comite, Autonomia o controllo esterno? Il dilemma dell’adesione dell’UE alla CEDU alla luce del parere 2/13
• Note e Commenti
• Marco Longobardo & Federica Violi, Quo vadis peace-keeping? La compatibilità dell’Intervention Brigade in Congo con i principi regolanti le operazioni di pace

New Issue: Climate Law

The latest issue of Climate Law (Vol. 5, no. 1, 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Benoit Mayer, The Applicability of the Principle of Prevention to Climate Change: A Response to Zahar
• Alexander Zahar, Methodological Issues in Climate Law
• Kerryn Brent, Jeffrey McGee & Amy Maguire, Does the ‘No-Harm’ Rule Have a Role in Preventing Transboundary Harm and Harm to the Global Atmospheric Commons from Geoengineering?
• Jolene Lin, The First Successful Climate Negligence Case: A Comment on Urgenda Foundation v. The State of the Netherlands (Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment)
• Thomas Deleuil & Tuula Honkonen, Vertical, Horizontal, Concentric: The Mechanics of Differential Treatment in the Climate Regime

Conference: Patent Sovereignty and International Law

On October 16, 2015, the University of California Irvine School of Law will host a conference on "Patent Sovereignty and International Law." Here's the idea:

The international patent system walks a tightrope between harmonization and diversity. Harmonization efforts offer the benefit of uniformity, but because of diverse national interests, one size cannot fit all countries. What national flexibilities do current treaties such as the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) offer? Given the rise of regional trade agreements, and controversies over “fast track” negotiating authority, what flexibilities will be available in the future? This conference begins with the recent Declaration on Patent Protection and Regulatory Sovereignty Under TRIPs as a launching point to explore the proper balance between international patent harmonization and national sovereignty.

Lecture: Simpson on "Human Rights with a Vengeance: One Hundred Years of Retributive Humanitarianism" (Video)

On August 13, 2015, Gerry Simpson (Univ. of Melbourne - Law) delivered the Annual Kirby Lecture on International Law at the Australian National University College of Law. His topic was "Human Rights with a Vengeance: One Hundred Years of Retributive Humanitarianism." The video is here.

Helfer: Sub-Regional Courts in Africa: Litigating the Hybrid Right to Freedom of Movement

Laurence R. Helfer (Duke Univ. - Law) has posted Sub-Regional Courts in Africa: Litigating the Hybrid Right to Freedom of Movement. Here's the abstract:

Human rights attorneys and civil society groups in Africa have recently focused their advocacy efforts on sub-regional courts associated with economic integration communities in East, West and Southern Africa. The East African Court of Justice (EACJ), the Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and the Tribunal of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) have received few suits challenging trade restrictions and other barriers to sub-regional integration. Instead, and surprisingly, the courts’ dockets are dominated by complaints alleging violations of international human rights law.

This article offers the first analysis of EACJ, ECOWAS Court and SADC Tribunal decisions concerning the free movement of persons. Freedom of movement is a hybrid legal right. It is protected in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and in other human rights instruments, but it is also a central pillar of all regional integration systems. Free movement case law thus offers a revealing lens through which to examine how African sub-regional courts decide which litigants have access to justice, interpret international legal norms, and fashion the remedies awarded to successful complainants.

da Silva & Wood: Weapons and International Law: The Arms Trade Treaty

Clare da Silva & Brian Wood have published Weapons and International Law: The Arms Trade Treaty (Larcier 2015). Here's the abstract:

Weapons and International law: The Arms Trade Treaty gives a thorough legal and practical analysis of this important new legal instrument to regulate the global trade of the most commonly-used conventional arms.

New Issue: Legal Issues of Economic Integration

The latest issue of Legal Issues of Economic Integration (Vol. 42, no. 3, 2015) is out. Contents include:

• From the Board, Forty Years of EU Consumer Protection: Where Does It Stand Now?
• Sahir Özdemir, A Comment on the Inconsistency between the EU-Turkey Association Law and EU Secondary Legislation
• Peter Hilpold, Filling a Buzzword with Life: The Implementation of the Solidarity Clause in Article 222 TFEU
• Derek O’Brien, The Right of Free Movement within Caricom: A Step towards Caribbean ‘Citizenship’? Lessons from the European Union
• Kamala Dawar, The WTO Government Procurement Agreement: The Most-Favoured Nation Principle, the GATS and Regionalism
• Henrik Skovgaard-Petersen, Market Citizenship and Union Citizenship: An ‘Integrated’ Approach? The Martens Judgment
• Daniel Mandrescu, Access to Leniency Programme Documents Based on the Transparency Regulation: The European Commission v. EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG

Hameiri & Jones: Governing Borderless Threats: Non-Traditional Security and the Politics of State Transformation

Shahar Hameiri (Murdoch Univ.) & Lee Jones (Queen Mary Univ. of London) have published Governing Borderless Threats: Non-Traditional Security and the Politics of State Transformation (Cambridge Univ. Press 2015). Here's the abstract:

'Non-traditional' security problems like pandemic diseases, climate change and terrorism now pervade the global agenda. Many argue that sovereign state-based governance is no longer adequate, demanding and constructing new approaches to manage border-spanning threats. Drawing on critical literature in political science, political geography and political economy, this is the first book that systematically explains the outcomes of these efforts. It shows that transboundary security challenges are primarily governed not through supranational organisations, but by transforming state apparatuses and integrating them into multilevel, regional or global regulatory governance networks. The socio-political contestation shaping this process determines the form, content and operation of transnational security governance regimes. Using three in-depth case studies - environmental degradation, pandemic disease, and transnational crime - this innovative book integrates global governance and international security studies and identifies the political and normative implications of non-traditional security governance, providing insights for scholars and policymakers alike.

New Issue: Global Trade and Customs Journal

The latest issue of Global Trade and Customs Journal (Vol. 10, nos. 7/8, 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Practical Aspects of Sanctions and Embargoes: A Comparative View
• Lorenzo Di Masi, Maurizio Gambardella, & Davide Rovetta, An Overview of EU Sanctions Case Law
• Frank Altemöller, Leadership and Management Development: Meeting the Challenges of Economic Integration
• David Leys, EU Competence in Foreign Direct Investment: Will the EU Court of Justice End the Controversy?
• Shintaro Hamanaka, The Fourth Wave of FTAs in 2015–2016?

New Issue: Review of International Political Economy

The latest issue of the Review of International Political Economy (Vol. 22, no. 4, 2015) is out. Contents include:

• Stephen Golub, Ayse Kaya & Michael Reay, What were they thinking? The Federal Reserve in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis
• Carolin Liss & J.C. Sharman, Global corporate crime-fighters: Private transnational responses to piracy and money laundering
• Erin Lockwood, Predicting the unpredictable: Value-at-risk, performativity, and the politics of financial uncertainty
• Jeffrey M. Chwieroth, Professional ties that bind: how normative orientations shape IMF conditionality
• Francesca Gambarotto & Stefano Solari, The peripheralization of Southern European capitalism within the EMU
• Dimitrios Soudis, Credit Rating Agencies and the IPE: Not as influential as thought?
• Richard W. Carney, The stabilizing state: State capitalism as a response to financial globalization in one-party regimes

Ratner: Complicity and Compromise in the Law of Nations

Steven R. Ratner (Univ. of Michigan - Law) has posted Complicity and Compromise in the Law of Nations (Criminal Law and Philosophy, forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

This paper considers the implications of Chiara Lepora and Robert Goodin's On Complicity and Compromise (OUP, 2013) for our understanding of international law. That volume systematizes and evaluates individuals’ ethical choices in getting (too) close to evil acts. For the law of nations, these concepts are relevant in three critical ways. First, they capture the dilemmas of those charged with implementing international law, e.g., Red Cross delegates pledged to confidentiality learning of torture in a prison. Second, they offer a rubric for understanding when a state may use coercion against certain actors, e.g., international law's rules for when one state may use force against another based on the latter's ties to terrorist acts. Third, they offer a moral grounding for many international obligations of states based on the need to avoid their own complicity in others' wrongs, e.g., by not expelling refugees to a state persecuting them or by preventing private actors from committing human rights abuses. In the case of the last two, the law reflects decisions by states about how much complicity they will tolerate – either complicity by others or complicity by the states themselves.

From the perspective of an international lawyer concerned with promoting the rule of law internationally, Lepora and Goodin's framework helps us appreciate the moral basis behind certain legal rules. To the extent we can see legal rules, international or domestic, as morally acceptable and just and not merely the product of power politics, we increase the prospects for compliance with them. A moral acceptable approach to complicity within the law can have more buy-in than a rule without such a moral grounding. Equally important, international law's approach to complicity helps our understanding of morality itself by marking some clear lines in the sand.