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Full-Text Articles in Law
Humanitarian Intervention: Evolving Norms, Fragmenting Consensus (Remarks), Rosa Brooks
Humanitarian Intervention: Evolving Norms, Fragmenting Consensus (Remarks), Rosa Brooks
Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works
Traditionally, the evolution of customary international law was understood as a gradual process: in some idealized model, we might see first a few states, and then a few more, implicitly agreeing to follow a practice, and then we would gradually begin to see additional states doing the same thing. We would also gradually accumulate evidence that these various states are acting in such a way because they consider themselves legally bound to do so. Then, over time, we’ll see more and more states following suit both in word and deed, until at some point we can say with a great …
The Supreme Court And The Alien Tort Statute: Kiobel V. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., Ingrid W. Brunk
The Supreme Court And The Alien Tort Statute: Kiobel V. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., Ingrid W. Brunk
Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications
Alien Tort Statute litigation has generated a growing number of questions about the the scope of statute, but in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. the Supreme Court finally answered one of them: the presumption against extraterritoriality applies to the statute. Going forward, courts may apply a robust version of the presumption, effectively ending ATS litigation as we currently know it. Or, they may not. The Court’s citations to Morrison v. Nat’l Austl. Bank Ltd. suggest the former; some language in the various opinions suggests the latter. This article explores these uncertainties and also discusses additional factors that may be …
Use Of Comparative Law In Determining The Customary International Law Of Human Rights, Kenneth S. Gallant
Use Of Comparative Law In Determining The Customary International Law Of Human Rights, Kenneth S. Gallant
Faculty Scholarship
Comparative law method is essential to determining the customary international law status of rules of human rights law. Doing the hard, detailed work of comparative law is necessary if we are to give up on the unfortunate tendency to make overly broad, unsupported claims that wide varieties of human rights have passed into customary international law.
The traditional use of only interstate practice in determining rules of customary international law is insufficient where the rules concern relationships between states and individuals, especially their own nationals. This, however, is the essence of human rights law.
Comparative law techniques allow, and are …
Comparative Law And International Human Rights Law: Non-Retroactivity And Lex Certa In Criminal Law, Kenneth S. Gallant
Comparative Law And International Human Rights Law: Non-Retroactivity And Lex Certa In Criminal Law, Kenneth S. Gallant
Faculty Scholarship
No abstract provided.
Alien Tort Claims And The Status Of Customary International Law, Carlos Manuel Vázquez
Alien Tort Claims And The Status Of Customary International Law, Carlos Manuel Vázquez
Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works
Much of the recent debate about the status of customary international law in the U.S. legal system has revolved around the alien tort provision of the Judiciary Act of 1789, currently section 1350 of Title 28. In Filártiga v. Peńa-Irala, the decision that launched modern human rights litigation in the United States, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit relied on the view that customary international law has the status of federal common law in upholding section 1350’s grant of federal jurisdiction over a suit between aliens. The court’s position that customary international law was federal law was …
Re-Examining Customary International Law And The Federal Courts: An Introduction, Anthony J. Bellia
Re-Examining Customary International Law And The Federal Courts: An Introduction, Anthony J. Bellia
Journal Articles
Legal scholars have debated intensely the role of customary international law in the American federal system. The debate involves serious questions surrounding the United States's constitutional structure, foreign relations, and human rights. Despite an impressive body of scholarship, the debate has stood at an impasse in recent years, without either side garnering a consensus. This symposium–Re-examining Customary International Law and the Federal Courts–aspires to help advance the debate over the status of customary international law in the federal courts.
The symposium received thoughtful and constructive contributions from Professors Curtis A. Bradley, Bradford R. Clark, Andrew Kent, Carlos M. Vizquez, and …
Human Rights As Part Of Customary International Law:A Plea For Change Of Paradigms, Anthony D'Amato
Human Rights As Part Of Customary International Law:A Plea For Change Of Paradigms, Anthony D'Amato
Faculty Working Papers
The question for us international lawyers is how, and how much of, public sentiment for human rights has been transformed into binding international law.
Sources, Christine Chinkin
Sources, Christine Chinkin
Book Chapters
This chapter outlines the sources of international human rights law that are listed in Article 38(1) Statute of the International Court of Justice: treaties, custom, general principles of law, and, as subsidiary sources, judicial decisions and the writings of jurists. The chapter also considers how so-called 'soft law' instruments such as resolutions of the UN General Assembly and the work of human rights expert bodies may also be regarded as sources of human rights law.
Towards A Cosmopolitan Vision Of International Law: Identifying And Defining Cil Post Sosa V. Alvarez-Machain, Christiana Ochoa
Towards A Cosmopolitan Vision Of International Law: Identifying And Defining Cil Post Sosa V. Alvarez-Machain, Christiana Ochoa
Articles by Maurer Faculty
In the wake of the Supreme Court's decision in Sosa v. Alvarez-Machain, future Alien Tort Claims Act (ATCA) litigants seemingly will be asked to demonstrate that the norms giving rise to their actions are violations of clearly established Customary International Law (CIL). Given the mutable character of CIL, especially in the area of human rights, this will surely fuel the already voluminous literature on the content of the CIL of human rights.
While debate will certainly arise over the norms that have been become CIL, significant attention must be also be devoted to the problems inherent in the CIL of …
Remembering Sudetenland: On The Legal Construction Of Ethnic Cleansing, Timothy W. Waters
Remembering Sudetenland: On The Legal Construction Of Ethnic Cleansing, Timothy W. Waters
Articles by Maurer Faculty
What is the true shape of our commitment to prohibit ethnic cleansing? This Article explores that question by considering a case observers have almost universally decided does not constitute ethnic cleansing. It examines the recent controversy in the European Union, when Sudeten Germans demanded that the Czech Republic apologize for having expelled them after WWII before being admitted to the EU. Their demands were almost universally rejected and the legality of the expulsions was reconfirmed by all relevant actors. So what is the consequence for customary international law's rules on ethnic cleansing?
The Article derives the customary legal norms logically …
Applying The Death Penalty To Crimes Of Genocide, Jens David Ohlin
Applying The Death Penalty To Crimes Of Genocide, Jens David Ohlin
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
International Human Rights Standards In International Organizations: The Case Of International Criminal Courts, Kenneth S. Gallant
International Human Rights Standards In International Organizations: The Case Of International Criminal Courts, Kenneth S. Gallant
Faculty Scholarship
No abstract provided.
Customary International Law, S. James Anaya
Pro Bono Publico Meets Droits De L'Homme: Speaking A New Legal Language, Stephen A. Rosenbaum
Pro Bono Publico Meets Droits De L'Homme: Speaking A New Legal Language, Stephen A. Rosenbaum
Publications
In this Article, the author examines ways that legal aid advocacy organizations in the U.S. can utilize international human rights doctrine and procedures to advance the interests of poor and marginalized Americans in domestic and foreign venues. This is a sympathetic account of some of the efforts undertaken by legal services lawyers in this burgeoning field of law. The first section briefly describes the history and structure of the quasi-public legal aid programs funded by the Legal Services Corporation (LSC). Section two details practical reasons why attorneys may want to look to international instruments or forums to achieve their clients' …
Application Of International Human Rights Law In State And Federal Courts, Stephen A. Rosenbaum, Kathryn Burke, Sandra Coliver, Connie De La Vega
Application Of International Human Rights Law In State And Federal Courts, Stephen A. Rosenbaum, Kathryn Burke, Sandra Coliver, Connie De La Vega
Publications
This article provides a substantive discussion of international human rights law and how it can be used in federal and state courts to protect human rights within and outside the United States. It provides a comprehensive analysis of cases and examples of possible areas in which international human rights standards may be used to interpret United States laws. Specifically, the article seeks to promote more extensive use of international human rights laws by United States lawyers.
State and federal courts have traditionally used international law for the application and enforcement of treaties to which the United States has been a …