Law Commons^™

Economic Approaches To Global Regulation: Expanding The International Law And Economics Paradigm, Dan Danielsen

Dan Danielsen

The recent economic crisis has demonstrated with startling clarity the importance of developing a more robust framework for assessing the effects of national rules on global welfare. For more than fifty years, law and economics scholars have examined the effects of domestic legal rules on economic activity and general welfare in the United States. More recently, international law scholars have begun to use economic methods to analyze the international legal order. In this article I survey this evolving body of “international law and economics scholarship” with a view to articulating its principle methodological innovations as well as assessing its contributions …

Why Comply? An Analysis Of Trends In Compliance With Judgments Of The International Court Of Justice Since Nicaragua., Heather L. Jones

Heather L Jones

Decisions of the International Court of Justice have been met with substantial compliance in the modern era. Direct, defiant noncompliance -- where a state deliberately and ceaselessly rejects a decision of the Court and refuses to implement its judgment -- has not occurred in any case. In cases where noncompliancy has been present, the noncompliant behavior has been only initial or slight.

Pressure from the international community and the presence of international organizations raise the reputation costs associated with noncompliance thereby minimizing the risk of disobedience with judgments. Defiant noncompliance occurs where a judgment is in discord with a state’s …

Liability For Damage Caused By Space Objects Under International And National Law, Paul S. Dempsey

Paul S Dempsey

ABSTRACT Because of the imposition of State liability for damage inflicted by space objects under the multilateral Space Law Conventions, many States have promulgated national legislation providing licensing, insurance and indemnification by commercial providers. In order to promote commercial operations in space, some States also have capped liability. This article addresses two principal issues: (1) the liability exposure of States for death, injury, or property damage by providers of commercial spaceflight; and (2) how States protect themselves in their domestic legislation through indemnification and insurance requirements in the licensing and regulation of launches, launch sites, launch vehicles, space vehicles and …

The Sum Of The Parts, Therese O'Donnell

Human Rights & Human Welfare

From one perspective the Middle East lends itself as a macabre mise-en-scene where the triumph of realpolitik over the legitimacies of international law can be continually re-staged. To be sure, at least two sovereign states seem to go their own way, even in the face of rampant and valid international criticism—the end of a construction freeze on illegal settlements and failures to condemn clearly illustrate this point. However, two can play at that game. The US veto of the October 2003 draft Security Council resolution declaring as illegal Israel’s construction of its security fence, beyond the 1949 Green Line and …

Greenlighting American Citizens: Proceed With Caution, Philip Dore

Louisiana Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Age Of Impunity: Using The Duty To Extradite Or Prosecute And Universal Jurisdiction To End Impunity For Acts Of Terrorism Once And For All, Sarah Mazzochi

Northern Illinois University Law Review

Impunity remains one of the greatest challenges facing international peace and security today. This article seeks to lay out possible changes to current international law that are necessary to combat impunity, particularly regarding the international crime of terrorism. Part II will lay out what terrorism is and the obstacles the international community faces in achieving a singular definition for the word. Part II will also discuss the different approaches various conventions have taken in defining terrorism and will propose a concise definition the international community may want to adopt. Part II will end with calling for terrorism to be included …

The Puzzling Parameters Of The Foreign Law Debate, Vlad F. Perju

Vlad Perju

No abstract provided.

Globalization And The Theory Of International Law, Frank J. Garcia

Frank J. Garcia

The dominant modern account of the social basis of international law has been the "society of states" model. In this view, to the extent that international law constructs an ordered social space (a claim which has been contested since Hobbes if not before), it is a social space in which states are the actors. This view has had a profound effect on international law. For example, the doctrine of state responsibility classically understands international harms to individuals within a framework of harm to a state's rights. Normatively, to the extent justice is considered an operational concept in international law, it …

Review Of Legal Polycentricity And International Law, Frank J. Garcia

Frank J. Garcia

No abstract provided.

Newsletter, Fall 2011, Vol. 6, Issue 1, The Dean Rusk International Law Center

Newsletters

Ambassador Delivers Keynote at International Trade Conference; Georgia Democratic Leader Speaks at Civil Rights Conference; International Outreach and Education; International Law Colloquium Series; Conferences & Lectures; Notable Speakers Visit Rusk Center; Conference Focuses on Nuclear Security and Non-Proliferation; The TRIPS Agreement - Then and Now; In Memoriam: Professor Gabriel M. Wilner, 1938-2010; Law School Alum Joins Rusk Center Staff; International Judicial Training Program Continues to Expand.

Worth A Pound Of Cure? An Empirical Assessment Of The Bush Doctrine And Preventive Military Action, Paul F. Diehl, Shyam Kulkarni

University of Miami International and Comparative Law Review

The Bush Doctrine, or the proposal that allows the use of military force preventively to address prospective attack from terrorists or involving weapons of mass destruction, has been debated from various normative and legal vantage points. In this article, we introduce the new evaluative criterion that such military action must also produce the desired outcomes of defeating opponents and preventing future attacks. We test the efficacy of preventive military actions over the last two centuries. We conclude that using military force in a preventive fashion provides very limited, if any value, to states that employ this strategy. At best, there …

Probing The Scope Of Self Defense In International Law, Eustace Chikere Azubuike

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

The concept of self defense is one field of international law that has generated, and continues to generate, much controversy. The controversy is not as to the legality of self defense, but rather springs from a proper identification of the circumstances under which it applies. Thus, the International Court of Justice and other tribunals have received criticisms from states and academics for a perceived misapplication of the principle of self defense. The interpretation of the concept, like other important concepts in international law, has not been free from political considerations. Does this situation imply that the boundaries of self defense …

Home State, Cross-Border Custody, And Habitual Residence Jurisdiction: Time For A Temporal Standard In International Family Law, Todd Heine

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

This article addresses three jurisdictional standards that arise in every cross-border child custody dispute between European Union Member States and the United States: home state, cross-border, and habitual residence jurisdiction. These jurisdictional standards face uncertainty in many cases.

First, this article provides a history of family law jurisdiction in the United States and thoroughly reviews home state jurisdiction in United States domestic law. While domestic family lawyers know this standard, the standard’s rigidity and fragmented application among the states baffle many foreign family lawyers.

Second, this article offers an overview of the remarkable emergence of family law in European Union …

Keynote Address To The 20th Annual Fulbright Symposium – International Law In A Time Of Change, Michael Alsuel Ntumy

Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law

The theme of this symposium is International Law in a Time of Change. Considering the events that have engulfed international law in recent times, it is hard to imagine a more important or timely topic than this one. Whether one focuses on the rules, principles and concepts, or the institutions of international law, there is no escape from the fact that these things all bear the indelible imprint of change. This fitting theme has undoubtedly been influenced, I believe, by the "Change" campaign of President Barrack Obama, the “new Prince of Change.” For this reason, I am inclined to …

Human Rights Treaty Body Reform: New Proposals, Andrew Kloster

Andrew Kloster

“Reform” in international human rights law has become a narrow concept. A survey of the literature reveals that nearly any suggestion for reform concerns greater enforcement of international human rights substantive norms.

It is the purpose of this article to address the neglected question of treaty body role. Section II provides a nuts-and-bolts guide to the treaty body mandates for United Nations delegates, States Parties, and international lawyers. This section sketches the proper and improper actions for treaty bodies to take. It is our contention that if treaty bodies were limited to their proper role, they could more effectively use …

Parents Behaving Badly: Whether, In The Wake Of Miller-Jenkins, Public Policy Considerations Should Play A Role In Custody Decisions, Ethan G. Kate

Ethan G. Kate

Miller-Jenkins v. Miller-Jenkins illustrates the dilemma facing courts in contentious custody disputes: At what point, if ever, should the best interests of one child cede to the interests of society at large? The best interests standard has become the predominant norm for settling custody disputes under both domestic and international law, yet satisfying the needs of one child can potentially establish precedent that runs counter to public policy, often forcing courts to ignore – or at least claim to ignore – these public policy considerations in order to reach a decision based on the individual child’s best interests. Undoubtedly aware …

Vietnam, China, And The United States: The Regulatory Framework Of Mining Pollution And Water Quality, Heather Whitney

Heather Whitney

This paper compares the environmental, mining, and water quality policy and regulatory framework of three countries: Vietnam, China, and the United States. There are many similarities between China and Vietnam’s legal framework and environmental protection mechanisms, by virtue of the fact that they are both socialist countries, both authoritarian governments, and both in the midst of an industrial revolution. The United States intersects in some areas of water quality standards and technological controls of effluents with both countries, as well as certain enforcement measures. This is true especially in China, where the EPA has actively consulted the Chinese government in …

Fragmentation And Coherence In International Law, Joel P. Trachtman

Joel P Trachtman

With the increasing scope and density of international law, we will observe increasing instances of fragmentation. Fragmentation is not necessarily a problem, insofar as there may be no need for coordination among different legal regimes. But where it does raise issues of conflict, or presents opportunities for synergy, it is useful to inquire whether fragmentation might be managed in a way that would reduce inefficient conflict, or harvest synergies. The existing formal system for management, provided in the VCLT, is quite limited in its response, and the outcomes that it produces would not necessarily be substantively satisfactory. This article reviews …

Rethinking The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement Copyright Criminal Enforcement Measures, Miriam Bitton

Miriam Bitton

A few developed countries have secretly initiated and negotiated the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). The ACTA is aimed at enhancing international copyright and trademark enforcement measures. The Article analyses the copyright dimension of ACTA, considering its various provisions and the rationale behind them. The article does so by thoroughly examining the complex intersection of intellectual property law and criminal law. The Article then draws a few major conclusions and makes contributions to the area of copyright law: it shows how the ACTA in fact merely mimics the U.S. approach towards criminal enforcement of copyright law. Second, and more importantly, it …

How To Use The Fulbright Program To Internationalize Your Law School, Dena Davis

Journal of Legal Education

No abstract provided.

Legal Mechanization Of Corporate Social Responsibility Through Alien Tort Statute Litigation: A Response To Professor Branson With Some Supplemental Thoughts, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

This Response argues that as ATS jurisprudence “matures” or becomes more sophisticated, the legitimate limits of the law regress. The further expansion within the corporate defendant pool – attempting to pin liability on parent, great grandparent corporations and up to the top – raises the stakes and complexity of ATS litigation. The corporate social responsibility discussion raises three principal issues about how a moral corporation lives its life: how a corporation chooses its self-interest versus the interests of others, when and how it should help others if control decisions may harm the shareholder owners, and how far the corporation must …

The Holocaust Insurance Accountability Act Of 2010: Hearing Before The United States House Of Representatives, Committee On The Judiciary, Subcommittee On Commercial And Administrative Law. 111th Congress, 2nd Session, Michael P. Van Alstine

Michael P. Van Alstine

The testimony explores the essential legal issue of the extent to which executive agreements related to H.R. 4596 have any force as law in the United States. The agreements made it clear that they did not, by themselves, “provide an independent legal basis for dismissal” of claims of Holocaust victims filed in any courts of the United States. Instead, the executive branch simply agreed to file a “statement of interest” in such lawsuits to the effect “that U.S. policy interests favor dismissal on any valid legal ground.” Some lower courts have nonetheless given the statements of interest preemptive effect as …

The Other In International Law: 'Community' And International Legal Order, Maxwell O. Chibundu

Maxwell O. Chibundu

There is a built-in paradox in the emergence of international law over the last decade as a core concern of academics and policy-makers. On the one hand, it is difficult to imagine any other period in history that has witnessed such a profusion of attempts to tame the anarchical society by hedging it in a straight-jacket of legalities. Throughout the 1990s, international conferences generated reams of treaties, codes, and agendas for action. International adjudicatory tribunals proliferated, and endeavored to give teeth to ideas and obligations hitherto thought to be essentially aspirational. And yet, the ability of international law to regulate …

Pmcs On The High Seas: The Solution To Somali Piracy Or A Failure To Learn From History?, Bryan K. Doeg

University of Miami National Security & Armed Conflict Law Review

No abstract provided.

Taking International Law At Its Word And Its Spirit: Re-Envisioning Responsibility To Protect As A Binding Principle Of International Law, Tessa R. Davis

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Introduction: Transnational Corporations Revisited, Gralf-Peter Calliess

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

Articles first presented at a symposium in the context of the biannual conference of the German Law & Society Association (Vereinigung fur Recht und Gesellschaft e. V) on "Transnationalism in Law, the State, and Society." This conference was organized together with the Collaborative Research Center (CRC) 597 "Transformations of the State" at the University of Bremen from March 3-5, 2010. The Collaborative Research Center 597 'Transformations of the State," U. BREMEN, www.staat.uni-bremen.de

"Small Boats, Weak States, Dirty Money: Piracy And Maritime Terrorism In The Modern World," Martin N. Murphy, (New York: Columbia University Press, 2009), Francis D. Bonadonna , Capt.

Journal of Strategic Security

No abstract provided.

The Imposition Of The Death Penalty In The United States Of America: Does It Comply With International Norms?, Beverly Mcqueary Smith

Beverly McQueary Smith

No abstract provided.

Developing A World Vision: An Introduction To International Environmental Policy, Beverly Mcqueary Smith

Beverly McQueary Smith

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Role Of Legitimacy And Identity In Framing Responses To Global Reforms In Socialist Transforming Asia, John S. Gillespie

John S Gillespie

Exploring the Role of Legitimacy and Identity in Framing Responses to Global Legal Reforms in Socialist Transforming Asia John Gillespie Abstract A bourgeoning literature about socialist transforming Asia (China and Vietnam) shows that economic development is possible without fully functioning legal systems based on laws and institutions derived from North America and Europe. What is less clear is whether over time the regulatory systems in these countries will evolve toward more economically efficient globalized forms of Western governance, as some commentators suggest, or follow a more complex pattern of convergence and divergence. This article advances the debate by investigating the …