Law Commons^™

The Myth Of International Delegation, Andrew T. Guzman, Jennifer Landsidle

Andrew T Guzman

There is a growing and misinformed sense in some quarters that the United States and other countries have engaged (and continue to engage) in delegations to international institution that involve a significant threat to domestic sovereignty. Concerns about such delegations come from academics (John Yoo: “Novel forms of international cooperation increasingly call for the transfer of rulemaking authority to international organizations”), prominent politicians (Bob Barr: “Nary a thought is given when international organizations, like the UN, attempt to enforce their myopic vision of a one-world government upon America, while trumping our Constitution in the process. Moreover, many in our own …

Choice Of Law, The Constitution And Lochner, James Y. Stern

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

States, Markets, And Gatekeepers: Public-Private Regulatory Regimes In An Era Of Economic Globalization, Christopher M. Bruner

Scholarly Works

This paper illuminates the spectrum of international economic regimes through discussion of an under-theorized regulatory structure in which traditional distinctions between state and market, public and private power, hard and soft law, and international and domestic policy realms, essentially collapse - the public-private gatekeeper.

Specifically, I examine striking similarities between global bond markets and e-commerce markets through comparison of entities regulating admission to them - the dominant credit rating agencies (Standard & Poor's and Moody's), and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). Following anexamination of the development of these markets and the global regulatory power exercised by …

Mining For Gold: The Constitutional Court Of South Africa's Experience With Comparative Constitutional Law, Ursula Bentele

Ursula Bentele

MINING FOR GOLD: THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA’S EXPERIENCE WITH COMPARATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL LAW

Ursula Bentele

Abstract

Despite a long history of referring to foreign law in its opinions, the Supreme Court’s recent citations to such sources have caused heated controversy. Critics warn of threats to sovereignty as well as serious flaws in the way judges use outside authority. Largely missing from this debate is any probing examination of the actual practice of engaging with foreign authorities. This article attempts to fill the empirical void by analyzing closely one court that has used foreign law extensively: the Constitutional Court of …

Boumediene V. Bush And Guantánamo, Cuba: Does The "Empire Strike Back"?, Ernesto A. Hernandez

Ernesto A. Hernandez

Focusing on the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Boumediene v. Bush (2008) and the U.S. occupation of the Naval Station at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, this article argues that the base’s legal anomaly heavily influences “War on Terror” detention jurisprudence. Anomaly is created by agreements between the U.S. and Cuba in 1903 and 1934. They affirm that the U.S. lacks sovereignty over Guantánamo but retains “complete jurisdiction and control” for an indefinite period; while Cuba has “ultimate sovereignty.” Gerald Neuman labels this as an anomalous zone with fundamental legal rules locally suspended. The base was chosen as a detention center because …

Indigenous Recognition In International Law: Theoretical Observations, Patrick Macklem

Patrick Macklem

Drawing on a classic essay by Hans Kelsen, this Article addresses the status of indigenous peoples in international law. It argues that the criteria for determining the legal existence of indigenous peoples in international law are a function of the nature and purpose of international indigenous rights. The twentieth century legal history of international indigenous rights, from their origins in international protection of indigenous workers in colonies to their contemporary expression in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, demonstrates that their purpose is to mitigate injustices produced by how the international legal order treats sovereignty as …

Subjects Of Sovereignty: Indigeneity, The Revenue Rule, And Juridics Of Failed Consent, Audra Simpson

Law and Contemporary Problems

Simpson examines the way in which indigeneity and sovereignty have been conflated with savagery, lawlessness, and smuggling in recent history. The national problem of indigenous smuggling is reconstructed here as it was portrayed in the public eye, largely via the media, and then through conflict-of-laws cases concerning the interpretation and application of the revenue rule. Simpson further discusses economic activities that express indigenous cultural and historical practice and that reflect a larger set of socio-economic conditions.

Sovereignty, Law And The State Of Exception: Analysing Agamben In The Indian Context, Aditya Swarup

Aditya Swarup

No abstract provided.

Unilateral Home State Regulation: Imperialism Or Tool For Subaltern Resistance?, Sara L. Seck

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

Home state reluctance to regulate international corporate activities in the human rights context is sometimes characterized as an imperialistic infringement of host state sovereignty. This concern may be explicit, or it may be implicit in an expressed desire to avoid conflict with the sovereignty of foreign states. Yet, in the absence of a multilateral treaty directly addressing business and human rights, a regulatory role for home states in preventing and remedying human rights harms is increasingly being suggested. This paper seeks to explore theoretical perspectives that support unilateral home state regulation. Having established that unilateral home state regulation could serve …

Cultural Conflicts, Annelise Riles

Law and Contemporary Problems

Riles show how contemporary anthropological insights into the character of cultural difference and cultural fragmentation can reframe conflict-of-laws analysis in productive ways. Taking up the example of the treatment of Native American sovereignty in US courts, she argues that a theory of conflict of laws as a discipline devoted to addressing the problem of cultural conflict is more doctrinally illuminating than the mainstream view of conflict of laws as political conflict. Riles suggests that the general dissatisfaction with conflicts as a field in the United States, and its failure to live up to tits larger promise, may stem in part …

Afterword, Marianne Constable

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.

Liberia's Gemap: A New Wave In Development Intervention?, Edefe Ojomo

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Custom And Its Revival In Transnational Private Law, J. H. Dalhuisen

Duke Journal of Comparative & International Law

No abstract provided.

Reinstating Treaty-Making With Native American Tribes, Phillip M. Kannan

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Beyond Sovereignty? The State After The Failure Of Sovereignty, Eric Engle

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

Sovereign state power, absolute and unlimited, were supposed to guarantee the lives and property of citizens. Instead, states became vectors for mass violence.

The Private Military Company—Unravelling The Theoretical, Legal & Regulatory Mosaic, Jackson N. Maogoto, Benedict Sheehy

Jackson Nyamuya Maogoto

As an undeclared arm of the state, the PMC is politically expedient having proved to be highly advantageous in certain circumstances when states wish to engage in surreptitious or unpopular violence, yet easy to condemn when states need to gather political capital. In other words, the PMC has become an integral actor in the system of governance at both national and international levels. Such corporations, at least at one level, represent the evolution, globalization, and corporatization of the age-old mercenary trade. The worry, of course, is that they operate without the public scrutiny appropriate for military actors. Indeed, the matter …

Two Crises Of Confidence: Securing Non-Proliferation And The Rule Of Law Through Security Council Resolutions, Vik Kanwar

Vik Kanwar

This timely article describes the powers of the United Nations Security Council as they have developed in the field of non-proliferation, and demonstrated in recent resolutions, and goes on to propose a normative framework based on the model of reciprocal “confidence-building” measures to ensure the legality and legitimacy of these resolutions.

Recent proliferation crises (concerning Iran, North Korea, and non-state proliferation networks) have led the Council draw upon various sources-- express and implied powers under the UN Charter, powers granted by specific treaties, and an unusual degree of international consensus-- to expand its powers. This paper attempts to transcend false …

Neotrusteeship Or Mistrusteeship? The "Authority Creep" Dilemma In United Nations Transitional Administration, Christian E. Ford

Christian E Ford

No abstract provided.

Sovereignty And Delegation In International Organizations, David Epstein, Sharyn O'Halloran

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.

Tribal Nation Economics: Rebuilding Commercial Prosperity In Spite Of U.S. Trade Restraints–Recommendations For Economic Revitalization In Indian Country, Angelique Eaglewoman

Faculty Scholarship

Tribal commerce created the current highways that stretch from coast-to-coast in North America today. The roads that are traveled by semi-trucks full of cargo, grocery produce, and all manner of commercial goods are on top of the ancient trade routes Natives have traveled for centuries. Unfortunately, the history and sophistication of Native commercial activities have been largely suppressed and left out of the story of the North American continent as Euro-Americans rewrote the continent’s history to reflect the glorification of colonization. The truth is that there was no need for the 'rugged pioneer' to cut through tall grass to head …

Indigenous Self-Determination: A Global Perspective, David E. Wilkins

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

The concepts of self-determination and sovereignty, from an Indigenous perspective, embrace values, attitudes, perspectives, and actions. Of course, as a result of the historical phenomenon known as colonialism, in which expansive European states sought to dominate the rights, resources, and lands of aboriginal people worldwide, one cannot discuss Indigenous self-determination and sovereignty without some corresponding discussion of how states and their policy makers understand these politically charged terms as well.

I have been thinking, acting, researching, and writing on these two vital concepts, intergovernmental relations, critical legal theory, and comparative Indigenous politics for nearly two decades. Along with this, I …

Condominum Arrangements In International Practice: Reviving An Abandoned Concept Of Boundary Dispute Resolution, Joel H. Samuels

Michigan Journal of International Law

This Article attempts to revive the consideration of condominium as a possible solution to contemporary boundary disputes. Part I describes specific historic instances of condominia and derives relevant lessons from each instance. Part II notes that some critics of condominium have in fact confused condominium with other forms of joint dominion over territory. This Part proceeds, therefore, to distinguish condominium from these other arrangements. Next, Part III discusses how experiences with common property regimes over common resources (such as water supplies) might inform the contemporary use of condominium. Finally, informed by lessons articulated in Parts I through III, Part IV …

Slavery, Federalism, And The Constitution: Ableman V. Booth And The Struggle Over Fugitive Slaves , Earl M. Maltz

Cleveland State Law Review

The Article will discuss and analyze the forces that shaped Ableman v. Booth, one of the most dramatic confrontations in the long-running dispute over fugitive slaves, the Supreme Court's disposition of the case, and the aftermath of the decision. The Article will begin by describing the state of the dispute over fugitive slaves in the mid-1850s. The Article will then recount the events that brought Ableman to the Supreme Court and analyze the Court's opinion. Finally, the Article will discuss the aftermath and significance of the dispute.

Universal Human Rights And Threat To International Peace And Security: The United Nations' Obligation To Intervene, Godfrey Mhlanga

LLM Theses and Essays

This thesis seeks to establish the following:

• The nexus between the origins of the state and the universality of Human Rights
• That abuse of Human Rights is a threat to international peace and security, and
• It is an obligation for the international community under the auspices of the United Nations (UN) to intervene in the ‘internal affairs’ of a state which violates Human Rights.

The paper focuses on the paramountcy of Human Rights and argues that the doctrine of state sovereignty and cultural relativism undercut the essence and universality of Human Rights. The paper puts into perspective the interpretation of …

International Delegations And The Values Of Federalism, Neil S. Siegel

Law and Contemporary Problems

Siegel argues that the relationship between an international delegation and the values thought to be promoted by a federal structure of government depends upon what would happen in the absence of the international delegation. Focusing on the effect of international delegation on US subnational states, Siegel explains that when the delegation replaces regulation by the federal government that would have displaced state choices anyway, then the effect on federalism values depends on the relative inclinations of the federal government and the international body to decentralize.

The Glass Half-Full: A Rational/Radical Approach To Immigration Reform, Bill Piatt

Faculty Articles

The problems the United States faces in redirecting immigration policies cannot be successfully addressed by a quick fix immigration “reform.” The legal, economic, sociological, political, racial, and moral issues are too complex and have been largely unresolved. As a result, it is unrealistic to expect political leaders to develop an easy solution that will satisfy the myriad competing and conflicting concerns.

Most of the calls for reform are not issued by individuals completely aware of the extent of immigration regulation and of its impact on American society. Rather, calls come from those with relatively narrow interests from all ranges of …

International Delegation And State Sovereignty, Oona A. Hathaway

Law and Contemporary Problems

Hathaway rebuts the claim that state sovereignty almost always suffers when states delegate authority to international institutions. Critics of delegation err, she contends, by overemphasizing the costs but losing sight of some of the substantial benefits of cooperation. She considers the challenge to sovereignty posed by international delegation by focusing on recent debates over the influence of international legal commitments on domestic governance.

Human Freedom And Two Friedmen: Musings On The Implications Of Globalization For The Effective Regulation Of Corporate Behavior, Leo E. Strine Jr.

All Faculty Scholarship

In this essay, which was delivered as the Torys Lecture at the University of Toronto, Vice Chancellor Strine considers the implications of globalization for the effective regulation of corporate behavior affecting interests other than those of stockholders against the backdrop of the West’s political and economic experience. He concludes that consistent with prior experience, the globalization of corporate markets will require a corresponding expansion of the polity to protect those aspects of human freedom that are affected in important ways by corporate behavior. As a practical matter, this means that if the U.S. and other Western nations wish to limit …

Limiting Federal Agency Preemption: Recommendations For A New Federalism Executive Order, William Funk, Thomas Mcgarity, Nina A. Mendelson, Sidney Shapiro, David Vladeck, Matthew Shudtz, James Goodwin

Other Publications

The structure of the U.S. Constitution reflects a profound respect for the principles of federalism and state sovereignty. These principles require the federal government to recognize and encourage opportunities for state and local governments to exercise their authority, especially in areas of traditional state concern such as the protection of the health, safety, and welfare of their citizens. However, over the last six years there has been a coordinated Executive Branch effortto use the regulatory process to shield certain product manufacturers from state tort liability. The Food and Drug Administration, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and Consumer Product Safety Commission, …

Who Is The "Sovereign" In Sovereign Debt?: Reinterpreting A Rule-Of-Law Framework From The Early Twentieth Century, Odette Lienau

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Combining legal interpretation with political science analysis, this Article highlights the competing "statist" and "popular" conceptions of sovereignty at stake in sovereign debt issues. It argues that these two dominant approaches do not exhaust the offerings of intellectual history and considers an alternative approach that emerged in the early twentieth century and may be of relevance again today. The Article contends that U.S. Chief Justice Taft's foundational 1923 "Tinoco" decision, which grounds the current approach to sovereign governmental recognition, has been misinterpreted to support a purely statist or absolutist conception of sovereignty. It argues that a proper interpretation presents an …