Carbado, Crenshaw, Desautels-Stein, & Thomas: Race, Racism, and International Law

Devon W. Carbado (New York Univ. - Law), Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw (Columbia Univ. - Law), Justin Desautels-Stein (Univ. of Colorado - Law), & Chantal Thomas (Cornell Univ. - Law) have published Race, Racism, and International Law (Stanford Univ. Press 2025). The table of contents is here. Here's the abstract:

From its inception in the 70s and 80s, critical race theory's target was the field of law, revealing it to be a repository for racial power. This particular critique of law was explosive because of law's putatively apolitical status, making it a unique site for an intellectual sit-in that has forever changed the way that race and racism are understood in American society.

Several decades later, as indicators of populism and white nationalism spread across North America and Europe, critical race theory remains markedly absent from discourses in global affairs and international law. This volume opens the door for CRT to enter the international sphere. Featuring contributions from 30 of today's leading scholars from around the world, Race, Racism, and International Law explains how the concept of racial difference sits at the foundation of the legal, political, and social structures of hierarchy that shape the contemporary global order. Helmed by four pioneering experts, two in CRT and two in international law, the volume's approach targets regimes of power and violence that implicate racism, capitalism, and colonialism. This volume lays the groundwork for urgent and provocative new modes of critique and analysis.

Marceddu: EU Values in Investment Law and Policy: Promises of Democracy and Rule of Law?

Maria Laura Marceddu (Edinburgh Center for International and Global Law) has published EU Values in Investment Law and Policy: Promises of Democracy and Rule of Law? (Oxford Univ. Press 2025). Here's the abstract:

Is it possible that the EU premises of democracy and rule of law transform the global landscape of international investments? For realists, this is a calculated political move- an opportunity for the EU to shape the world according to the rules established in Brussels. To the most skeptical, the ambition to export these values might seem too grandiose, if not far-fetched, especially considering that the system somewhat displays these features already. Yet the more idealistic, like the author of this book, would find it fascinating, especially given the undeniable visionary component that has permeated the EU story since its beginning.

EU Values in Investment Law and Policy intends to carry this fire and continues to tell precisely that story of vision, ambition, and influence. Inspired by premises that have aspired to become promises of democracy and rule of law, the book critically examines how- and how far- these EU values extended their reach into international investment law and policy. While the book is not an ode to the EU, there is plenty that is admirable in the EU transmission efforts and is likely to leave an imprint on the investment regime's dynamics. It is these efforts that this book unravels to explain how the international investment system deficits are turned into an opportunity for normative change.

The book seeks to establish a solid analytical foundation to unpack the EU's evolving aspirations as a global leader in reimagining traditional investment rules. Through a careful critique of EU initiatives, it sheds light on the fine line between innovation and dogmatism, showing where the EU has genuinely (re)shaped and advanced international norms and where its bold rhetoric meets its limits.

For scholars, practitioners, and those intrigued by the intersection of law, policy, and global governance, EU Values in Investment Law and Policy offers a captivating exploration of how a visionary Europe continues to inspire change in international investment, setting the stage for a fairer and more value-driven global system.

Symposium: New Trends and Challenges in International Law of the Sea, Celebrating Judge Shigeru Oda

On September 19, 2025, the Center for International Law and Policy of Tohoku University will hold a symposium, in the hybrid format, on “New Trends and Challenges in International Law of the Sea,” celebrating Judge Shigeru Oda. Details are here.

New Issue: Transnational Criminal Law Review

The latest issue of the Transnational Criminal Law Review (Vol. 4, no. 1, 2025) is out. Contents include:

• The United Nations Convention Against Transnational Oraganised Crime Turns 25: Challenges, Celebrations, and Controversies
• Francesco Calderoni, UNTOC at 25: Achievements, Challenges, and Diverging National Responses to Organized Crime Offences
• Calogero Ferrara, The United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime: Celebrations, Challenges, and the path forward on its 25th Anniversary
• Neil Boister, The UNTOC and International Cooperation
• Frank Zimmermann, The UN Protocol Against the Smuggling of Migrants – Some Reflections on the Occasion of the UNTOC’s 25th Anniversary
• Luigi Achilli, Future Progress and Prospects of the Smuggling of Migrants ProtocolL
• Max Menn, Double-Barrelled, Double Target: The Firearms Protocol Between Arms Control and Crime Prevention
• Marika McAdam, The Estrangement of the Trafficking in Persons Protocol from its Parent Treaty against Transnational Organized Crime
• Karine Bannelier, Risks and Opportunities of the UN Cybercrime Convention for the UNDOC & the Fight Against Transnational Organised Crime: A First Assessment
• Ian Tennant & Mark Shaw, Is the UNTOC working?

New Issue: Journal of Conflict & Security Law

The latest issue of the Journal of Conflict & Security Law (Vol. 30, no. 2, Summer 2025) is out. Contents include:

• Elena Katselli Proukaki, Enforcing collective/community interests through essential security clauses and solidarity measures in the context of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine
• Aurel Sari, Indiscriminate attacks and the proportionality rule: what is incidental civilian harm?
• Giacomo Biggio, Regulating non-kinetic effects of cyber operations: the ‘Loss of Functionality’ approach and the military necessity-humanity balance under International Humanitarian Law
• Thibault Moulin, The phantom pain: an international law perspective on the weaponization of infrasound, ultrasound, and microwaves
• Shai Farber & Ofek Efraim Alaluf, Legal frameworks for mass terrorism: the October 7th attack and implications for security law