Call for Papers: YJIL Young Scholars Conference

The Yale Journal of International Law and the Yale Forum for International Law, in cooperation with the Junior International Law Scholars Association, have issued a call for papers for YJIL's seventh Young Scholars Conference, February 25-26-2011, in New Haven. The theme is "Non-State Actors and International Law." Here's the call:

NON-STATE ACTORS AND INTERNATIONAL LAW

A Young Scholars Conference

February 25-26, 2011

New Haven, CT

I. Introduction

The Yale Journal of International Law (YJIL) is delighted to announce that its seventh Young Scholars Conference will be held February 25-26, 2010, on the topic of “Non-State Actors and International Law.” This year’s Conference will be held in conjunction with the annual workshop of the Junior International Law Scholars Association (JILSA). The Conference is designed to bring together young faculty, practitioners, and law students to explore the increasing relevance of non-state actors in the international system and the international law that governs their actions. The conference will take place at Yale Law School in New Haven, Connecticut.

Recipients of this call for participation are invited to submit proposals for presentation at the Conference. Individuals who are selected for participation will be offered travel expenses and accommodations for the duration of the Conference.

II. Background

The twentieth century is associated with the rise of the nation-state and the organization of the state system, as it evolved from the Peace of Westphalia. The formal organization of world society accorded primary relevance to the state as political actor. International law, too, developed as a set of rules and practices governing the relations among states. In the last few decades, however, nation-states and the state system increasingly have been forced to share the stage of global history with a variety of non-state actors—global corporations, financial institutions, civil society actors, private military companies, and terrorist organizations, among others. Non-state actors are challenging the assumptions and limits of the existing international legal framework. At the Conference, we hope to explore this tension and examine proposals for reform of the legal framework to accommodate this new reality.

III. The Conference

Topics for the Conference panels will be decided this fall and we welcome proposals related to the Conference theme. Topics might include:

• The expanding role of international organizations and proposed Rules of Responsibility to regulate their actions on the world stage;
• Democracy and accountability within international organizations, including the participation of nongovernmental organizations;
• The liability of multinational corporations under customary international law, especially in light of recent Alien Tort Statute decisions;
• Developments in international arbitration and international regulation of commercial disputes;
• The role of civilian operators and other non-state actors in armed warfare;
• Defining and regulating cyber warfare;
• Developments in international law in the wake of the Iraq conflict and the impending closure of the prison at Guantanamo Bay;
• The reemergence of piracy as a global problem; and
• The application of Security Council sanctions against individuals.

Individuals are invited to respond to this call for participation with a one- or two-page proposal for a presentation, along with a brief CV. Proposals should be submitted by e-mail to Matias Sueldo (matias.sueldo[at]yale.edu), no later than October 25, 2010.

Applicants will receive notification of YJIL’s decision by November 19, 2010. Short written contributions (of approximately 1500-3000 words) based on the selected proposals will be expected by February 1, 2011. YJIL intends to publish content based on selected presentations made at the Conference in YJIL Online, the online companion of the print journal. YJIL Online can be found at http://www.yjil.org. Longer submissions may be considered for potential publication as well.

We look forward to your participation.

Alex Iftimie, Co-Editor-in-Chief, Yale Journal of International Law

William Perdue, Co-Editor-in-Chief, Yale Journal of International Law

Agniezska Rafskala, Co-Chair, Yale Forum for International Law

Catherine Rivkin, Co-Chair, Yale Forum for International Law

Matias Sueldo, Conference Director, Yale Journal of International Law