International Law Commons^™

Trips' Rebound: How The Agreement On Trade-Related Aspects Of Intellectual Property Rights ("Trips") Can Ricochet Back Against The United States: An Historical Analysis, Donald Harris

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No abstract provided.

Globalization: Panacea For The World Or Conquistador Of International Law And Statehood?, Aaron J. Lodge

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Recent powerful occurrences have led to an unprecedented world wide move in the direction of globalization. Globalization involves eliminating trade barriers, exchanging products and services across national borders, and the emergence of truly global corporations. Governments have embraced globalization in hopes of building stronger economies, creating jobs, and providing increased services and products. Debate has centered on the effect of globalization on sovereignty and the effect on individuals. However, the effect of globalization on international law has been largely ignored.

Today, international law—in the form of free trade agreements—enables the globalization process to occur faster than ever before. This article …

The Customary International Law Supergame, Joel P. Trachtman, George Norman

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Customary international law is an enigma. It is produced by the decentralized actions of states, and it generally lacks centralized enforcement mechanisms. Political science realists and some rationalist legal scholars argue that customary international law cannot affect state behavior: that it is “epiphenomenal.”

This article develops a model of an n-person prisoner’s dilemma in the customary international law context that shows that it is plausible that states would comply with customary international law under certain circumstances. These circumstances relate to: (i) the relative value of cooperation versus defection, (ii) the number of states effectively involved, (iii) the extent to which …

International Child Abductions: The Challenges Facing America , Charles F. Hall

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International child abductors often escape domestic law enforcement and disappear without consequence or resolution. International child abductions occur too frequently; in the United States alone, the number of children abducted abroad every year has risen to over 1,000. Currently, 11,000 American children live abroad with their abductors. These abductions occur despite international treaties and the Congressional resolutions that have significantly stiffened the penalties for those caught. Effectively combating international child abductions requires drafting resolutions that are acceptable across the diverse societies and cultures of the international community. Without such resolutions to fill the gaps of current treaties this problem will …

Reverse Moderate Relativism Applied: Third Generation International Human Rights From An Islamic Perspective, Jason G. Morgan-Foster

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This article develops my reverse moderate relativist theory on the universality of human rights, which I proposed in an article forthcoming in the ILSA J. Intl. & Comp. L. In this prior work, I argued that the debate over the universality of international human rights norms is too constrained, and that the three most popular theories in the universality debate – universalism, strict cultural relativism, and moderate cultural relativism – are each conceptually flawed. Universalism is untenable, because it eliminates the tensions between various cultures simply by ignoring them. Strict cultural relativism is unsatisfactory, because it discredits the whole field …

Patent Wars In The Valley Of The Shadow Of Death: The Pharmaceutical Industry, Ethics And Global Trade, Uche Ewelukwa

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No abstract provided.

Assisted Reproduction In Germany And The United States: An Essay In Comparative Law And Bioethics , John A. Robertson

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No abstract provided.

Lysistrata, Women And War: International Law's Treatment Of Women In Conflict And Post-Conflict Situations, Emma L. Lindsay

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Aristophanes’ Lysistrata is powerful anti-war play often revived during times of international conflict. This paper uses Lysistrata to highlight and critique binary oppositions that underpin the treatment of women in conflict and post-conflict situations in the play and in international law. While many of the experiences of women and girls in war are similar to those of men and boys, there are important differences. Existing inequalities between women and men, and patterns of discrimination against women and girls, tend to be exacerbated in wartime. There are circumstances in which women suffer harms of a different kind and to a different …

Reform(Aliz)Ing Copyright, Chris Sprigman

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Reform(aliz)ing Copyright looks at the effect of the removal from the U.S. copyright laws of copyright formalities like registration, notice, and renewal. Beginning in 1976, the U.S. moved from a “conditional” copyright system that premised the existence and continuation of copyright on compliance with formalities, to an “unconditional” system, where copyright arises automatically when a work is “fixed”. Richard Epstein has aptly characterized these changes as “copyright law . . . flipping over from a system that protected only rights that were claimed to one that vests all rights, whether claimed or not.” That is a fundamental shift in any …

Towards A New Core International Copyright Norm: The Reverse Three-Step Test, Daniel J. Gervais

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This paper argues that international copyright treaties, such as the WTO TRIPS Agreement, should no longer be developed as sets of minimum standards with a standardized exception filter, namely the three-step test, but rather include a normative standard for the copyright rights themselves. In seeking harmony between rights and exceptions, and in light of copyright haphazard evolution (by simply adding new rights when a new way of using protected content was invented), a single new core norm is proposed: the reverse three-step test.

A Positive Theory Of Universal Jurisdiction, Eugene Kontorovich

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Academic discussions of universal jurisdiction (“UJ”) have been almost entirely normative, focusing on what UJ “should” be in an ideal world. This Article breaks with the normative approach and analyzes UJ from a positive perspective, drawing on historical evidence and rational choice models to understand what UJ has in fact been and what it can be.

Piracy was for centuries the only UJ offense. This Article begins by isolating the characteristics of piracy that made it uniquely suitable for UJ. While these characteristics show why UJ over piracy would cause fewer problems than UJ over other crimes, they still fail …

How About A Little Perspective? The Usa Patriot Act And The Use And Abuses Of History, Jeffrey A. Breinholt

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A historical analysis of the U.S. law enforcement response to threatened terrorism, showing that the USA PATRIOT and other modern counterterrorism methods are neither unpredecented nor unconstitutional and that U.S. courts remain a haven for persons who feel threatened by government actions taken in the name of national security.

How Do The Social Benefits And Costs Of The Patent System Stack Up In Pharmaceuticals?, Daniel J. Gifford

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This paper explores the workings of the patent system in the context of the generation of new pharmaceutical products. First it identifies the relevant characteristics of the patent system and its relation to the market. The paper concedes that, in general, the patent system is probably the best way of generating new technology, in substantial part because that system uses the market to provide both incentives and rewards. The paper also identifies downsides of this patent/market system: deadweight loss and the unresponsiveness of that patent/market system to the needs of the poor. The paper then explores the social costs and …

The New, Old United Nations - Proposal Of An Interpretative Model, Paul Tan

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On the anniversary of the unilateral strike against Iraq, we are no closer to a definitive understanding of whether the attack is or is not legal. Many critics have, with much eloquence, made arguments for and against preventive self-defense as a normative concept, and others have scrutinized the text of the relevant Security Council resolutions and the United Nation’s Charter with much care to ascertain the technical merits of both claims. While both approaches have shed much light on this particular debate, it has done little to place it within its larger context. Iraq (and many conflicts before) should have …

The Evolving Law On The Eurobank—Customer Relationship And The Common Law., Edmund M. Kwaw

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The traditional common law rules respecting the banker-customer relationship are based on the notion that money on deposit is physical cash that has a location. Since eurocurrency deposits are book entries and not deposits of cash, this approach gives rise to problems when it is applied to the relationship between a eurobank and its customer. Thus far, decisions involving eurocurrency market deposits have been far from certain as to whether the traditional common law or a modified approach applies to the relatoinship between the eurobank and its customer. There is the need for Courts to introduce clarity and certainty into …

Partnerships With Monarchs: Univeiling And Re-Examining The Pattern Of "Third World" Economic Development In The Petroleum And Energy Sector, Diane M. Bales

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No abstract provided.

Citizens Of An Enemy Land: Enemy Combatants, Aliens, And The Constitutional Rights Of The Pseudo-Citizen, Juliet P. Stumpf

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No abstract provided.

Beyond Rights: Legal Process And Ethnic Conflicts, Elena A. Baylis

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Unresolved ethnic conflicts threaten the stability and the very existence of multi-ethnic states. The realities of ethnic conflict are daunting: ethnic disputes tend to be both persistent and complex, and efforts to use democracy or ethnic-blind policies to deal with those conflicts tend to fail. While multi-ethnic states have struggled to devise political solutions for ethnic conflict, they have largely ignored the role that legal processes might play in resolving ethnic discord. But at certain crucial moments in the development of ethnic conflicts, legal processes such as mediation, adjudication, and constitutional interpretation might effectively address these disputes.

This article explores …

Will The Wto Turn Green? The Implications Of Extending Observer Status To Multilateral Environmental Agreements, Richard L. Skeen

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This article addresses whether the WTO should extend permanent observer status to multilateral environmental agreements and analyzes the impact of injecting environmental issues into the multilateral trading system. The paper begins with a chronological analysis of the transition from the GATT governance of international trade to the formation of the WTO and will also examine influences upon the formation and the agenda of the Committee on Trade and the Environment. The discussion continues with a look at the Committee on Trade and the Environment’s first year of progress and discussion of the critical report entitled Special Studies 4: Trade and …

Global Governance, Antitrust, And The Limits Of International Cooperation, Paul B. Stephan

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The contemporary world economy make it easier to produce and sell across national borders. The partition of transactions into separate geographical components in turn makes it easier to pick and choose regulatory regimes. Antitrust law has dealt with this problem for nearly a century. At one time it regarded the assignment of a transaction to a particular territory as a prerequisite for the application of its rules; lately it has required much less. As a result, overlapping national regulation has become the dominant structure. Overlapping regulation has its own problems. National regimes may impose inconsistent rules and pursue conflicting ends. …

Enemies Foreign And Domestic: A Historical Look At The Use Of Military Commissions By The United States And The Case For Using Them Against American Citizens, James T. Barnett

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An historical look at the use of Military Commissions by the United States of America. This article examines the constitutional powers to use Military Commissions as well as the limitations on such commissions.

It also examines the use of these commissions against American citizens and argues that they are proper in certain circumstances. The limitations set out by the Supreme Court are eroded to the point of being void.

The article goes on to examine the cases of John Walker Lindh and Yasser Hamdi to show that Military Commissions are the proper forum for such cases.

Leaving Money On The Table: Contract Practice In A Low-Trust Environment, Ruben Kraiem

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Social capital – the level of trust inherent in a society – will affect the contracting practices that are considered standard, practical or fair. These practices in turn will help determine the parties’ positions as they approach their negotiation, how they will communicate, and what terms they will agree in any particular transaction. This is true not only for the small transaction, but also for large and complex deals. As a result, when operating in a low-trust environment, even sophisticated parties (who can bear the costs of tailoring an agreement to their particular case), will be prone to relinquish or …

After The Argentine Crisis: Can The Imf Prevent Corruption In Its Lending? A Model Approach, Juan Carlos Linares

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This paper focuses on curtailing the corruption inherent in the lending practices of the IMF and, subsequently, preventing another economic disaster as has occurred in Argentina. In fact, if it is at all to succeed in future attempts to restore a state’s monetary and fiscal standing, the IMF should incorporate language of the Accounting and Record-keeping provisions of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act into its loan agreement policies, thereby conditioning its loans upon transparency and good governance over borrowed funds. Part I of this article introduces corruption and its affect on international lending. Part II describes the IMF and …

Transnational Administration: International Data Transfers Under The European Privacy Directive, Francesca Bignami

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No abstract provided.

Beggar-Thy-Neighbor? Why The Wto Appellate Body’S Enforcement Of A Rigorous “Parallelism Requirement” Limits The Exemption Of Regional Trade Agreement Partners From The Application Of Safeguard Measures, Jordan Taylor

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The recent WTO Appellate Body decision in U.S. – Steel Safeguards provided a new wrinkle in the AB’s treatment of Regional Trade Agreement members who seek to exempt each other from the application of safeguard measures. Previously, the AB had supported a rigorous “parallelism requirement” compelling Members to equate the scope of the countries investigated with the scope of the countries upon which the safeguard measures would be applied before it would consider whether Article XXIV provided an affirmative defense permitting the exclusion of RTA partners from the application of such measures. Where there was an impermissible “gap” as between …

Un's Human Rights Norms For Transnational Corporations And Other Business Enterprises: An Imperfect Step In Right Direction?, Surya Deva

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No abstract provided.

International Marine Environment Law: A Case Study In The Wider Caribbean Region, Benedict C. Sheehy

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Abstract: This study examines the effectiveness of international marine environment law in controlling and abating contamination of the marine environment in the Wider Caribbean Region. The main international agreement covering the region is the Cartagena Convention which came into force in 1983. This convention, initiated by the UNEP under its Regional Seas Program, is considered one of the most successful of the programs. The study examines that claim in light of events since the adoption of the Cartagena Convention by the majority of nations bordering on the region. Mexico, because of its stature as a leading Latin American nation, is …

Arthritic Flexibilities: Analysis Of Wto Action Regarding Paragraph 6 Of The Doha Declaration On The Trips Agreement And Public Health, Brook K. Baker

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This paper explores the tortured history of developing countries’ pursuit of access to affordable generic medicines that they are unable to produce efficiently on their own. Having lost rights to treat medicines as essential commodities and as generalized exceptions to patent protections in the WTO TRIPS Agreement, developing countries and public health activists temporarily reasserted the primacy of health over profits in the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health in November of 2001. However, since most developing countries lack meaningful pharmaceutical capacity to manufacture medicines efficiently on their own, they needed flexibility to import medicines from countries …

Book Review: The Many Faces Of Power: An International Law Response To Robert Kagan’S “Of Paradise And Power”, Jason G. Morgan-Foster

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After summarizing the main points of Kagan’s book, the review responds to Kagan’s perception of power using the assumptions of international law, contrasting his definition of power to that of several international legal scholars. It then places Kagan’s realist approach in a broader context of international relations and international legal theory, beginning with a discussion of challenges to realism, and concluding with an examination of the growing body of “integrationist” literature which posits that the fields of international law and international relations are merging. The review then returns to the question of power, examining ways in which Kagan’s book challenges …

Developing Internationally Uniform Liability Principles For Harms From Genetically Modified Organisms , Ryan C. Hansen

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This paper analyzes the current legal principles regarding liabillity for harms from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the U.S. and E.U., as well as the various international policies and mechanisms affecting GMOs