International Law Commons^™

The Regulatory Trajectory Of Synthetic Securitization: A Breakdown Of International Regulatory Environments, Nicolas M. Dillavou

San Diego International Law Journal

The harmful effects on global financial stability that accompanied the 2007-2008 financial crisis (the “crisis”) were largely intensified by loose regulatory practices in the United States’ (U.S.) secondary mortgage market. Accordingly, the harm suffered on a global level warrants a comparative perspective on international securities regulation. This Article will examine several securitization methods in Europe and the U.S. and derive prospective solutions from these existing approaches that have the potential to address undue risks associated with asset-backed securities today.

This Article will initially discuss the history and causes of the subprime mortgage crisis and then discuss the particular difficulties with …

Enforceability: Foreign Arbitral Awards In Chinese Courts, Mo Zhang

San Diego International Law Journal

Enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in China has always been a widespread concern. There is not only a fear of deficiency in the Chinese legal system, but also a disconnection between foreign perception and Chinese reality. Since the nation joined the New York Convention in the 1980’s, China has made efforts to fulfill its treaty obligations. Foreign parties, however, remain skeptical about whether foreign arbitral awards will be fairly enforced in the country.

In 2015, the Supreme People’s Court of China (SPC) issued a judicial interpretation that contains provisions explicitly addressing several confusing and controversial matters on foreign arbitration. In …

V.20-1 2018 Masthead

San Diego International Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Ip Rights And Indigenous Rights: Between Commercialization And Humanization Of Traditional Knowledge, Julie Yassine

San Diego International Law Journal

The relevance of traditional knowledge is undeniable, but the only question that remains is how to protect it. Does IP law provide adequate and sufficient protection for traditional knowledge? Can it accommodate the particularities of indigenous groups without affecting their aspirations and inspirations? Applying IP law to traditional knowledge is highly contested by indigenous communities, as it can effectively lead to a community’s partial or total commercialization, which requires some efforts to “humanize” it for further adaptation to the context of indigenous rights.

For The Game. For The World. But What About For The Workers? Evaluating Fifa’S Human Rights Policy In Relation To International Standards, Haley Christenson

San Diego International Law Journal

This Comment will primarily review the labor trafficking and human rights concerns that arise in host countries of the World Cup, suggest a host for the 2026 World Cup based on candidates’ laws and infrastructure, and suggest changes for FIFA’s current human rights policy to aid in the prevention of labor trafficking in relation to the World Cup.

Can He Do That?: A Constitutional Analysis Of President Trump’S Withdrawal From The Paris Agreement, David Hubinger

San Diego International Law Journal

This Article is structured to give context as to the history of United Nations-sponsored, climate change centered, international agreements from the early 1990s to the present. The Article also shows how the goals and responsibilities placed on the United States as a part of the Paris Agreement may still be realized even without full party membership. Additionally, the Article discusses the structural framework of the Paris Agreement and the significance of its legal classification when deciding how President Trump can leave the agreement in accordance with international law. The Article will also discuss how President Trump’s actions regarding the Paris …

Net Neutrality, Antitrust, And Startups In The European Union, Megan Sacher

San Diego International Law Journal

The problem of internet traffic has now entered the personal sphere for individual users, and has gained attention in popular culture and politics. This was inevitable: from fitness tracking, to sending emails, automated surgeries, social media, and everything in between, more and more is happening on the internet. There are so many people using the internet that controlling the traffic and maintaining manageable speeds for users has become a real problem…For years, the European Union and the United States have found themselves in an uphill battle to maintain the open nature of the Internet, or as it was coined in …

Moving Beyond The Wto: A Proposal To Adjudicate Gmo Disputes In An International Environmental Court, Marguerite A. Hutchinson

San Diego International Law Journal

This Article begins with a brief summary of the scientific basis of creating GMOs and its historic precursors. The second section provides an overview of risks to humans and the environment. The third part of this Article analyzes the arguments put forward by both the United States and the E.U., which have defined the conflict between blocs of countries pushing GMOs abroad and those who persistently reject them. The fourth section evaluates the respective regulatory schemes imposed on GMOs by the United States and Europe, domestically and by international treaty. The success of these systems is evaluated in the fifth …

Policing Against The State: United Nations Policing As Violative Of Sovereignty, Alexandra R. Harrington

San Diego International Law Journal

It is the author's contention that both parties to the policing arrangement-be they individuals, states, or organizations-give up portions of their sovereignty in the creation and maintenance of the police and policed relationship where the police are not serving the state which theoretically guards the policed. Part II of this Article provides a discussion of legal concepts of state sovereignty in international law. Part III examines the role of police in U.N. peacekeeping missions from the first peacekeeping mission entailing policing operations in the 1960s through present day operations. This examination reveals a pattern in the growth and development of …

Tort Reform With Chinese Characteristics: Towards A Harmonious Society In The People's Republic Of China, Andrew J. Green

San Diego International Law Journal

This Article presents an analysis of tort law in China specifically focusing on personal injury tort law. It provides a general background on the role of tort law in society, and then it analyzes the specific laws, regulations, and cases that form the personal injury tort regime, covering both historical and recent laws. The article then explores the forces in society and politics that seem to be behind the new legal rules. It concludes by drawing attention to several steps that may be taken as part of further reform.

Equality In Germany And The United States, Edward J. Eberle

San Diego International Law Journal

This Article will proceed as follows. Part I will describe the methodology and approach of American and German equality law. The constitutional Courts of both countries value equality highly, resulting in strong and well developed jurisprudence. Each of the Courts employ a sliding scale of judicial scrutiny with the degree of scrutiny varying with the trait or personal interest affected by the governmental measure. Strict or extremely intensive scrutiny applies to measures targeting personal traits that especially affect a person's identity, like race, national heritage, or alienage under United States law, and race, sex, gender, language, national origin, disability, faith, …

The Meaning Of Wrongdoing - A Crime Of Disrespecting The Flag: Grounds For Preserving National Unity, Mohammed Saif-Alden Wattad

San Diego International Law Journal

To conclude on this issue, the rights of others, as individuals and as a whole, are formulated as the social protected interest that criminal law seeks to protect through criminal means, and it is with these rights that criminal law theory should be concerned in the first level of scrutiny. However, in the second level of scrutiny, an additional set of rights are brought into play; these are the rights of the individual, namely the actor, to exercise their constitutional rights e.g., free speech, liberty, free exercise of religion. The second level of scrutiny requires balancing those rights with the …

Foreword, Kate Ryzoc

San Diego International Law Journal

The United States has experienced unprecedented change over the last several months: the election of a black President, extreme volatility in the stock market, and the price of a barrel of gas dropping almost $100 in five months. However, these events on U.S. soil remind us how globally connected the world is. The election of Barack Obama caused global celebration. The economic downturn in the U.S. induced Britain, France, and others to execute massive stimulus packages. And when the price of a barrel of gas hit highs and lows, international markets reacted.

These international impacts remind us that the world …

Proxy Access Voting: Evaluating Proxy Access And The Recent Phenomenon Of Corporations Adopting Shareholder Protective Policies, Danielle Vukovich

San Diego International Law Journal

Shareholders hold a financial stake in a corporation, and therefore are often viewed as owners of the corporation and believed to be in control for all corporate actions. However, their powers are circumscribed. Board of directors committees nominate directors to serve the corporation and these directors have the power to select the corporation’s officers. The committees provide shareholders a slate of proposed directors that are voted on and approved at the annual shareholder meeting. Shareholders may also propose their own slate of directors, but this typically requires a proxy contest, which can be expensive due to the costs both associated …

Crispr/Cas-9 Technologies: A Call For A New Form Of Tort, Kendall Lovell

San Diego International Law Journal

Once relegated to the domains of science fiction, modern day scientists and researchers are poised on the precipice of making genome editing clinically available. Once introduced into a clinical setting the effects of an off-target mutation or germline edit will remain largely unknown until health issues arise later in life or in the following generation. The novelty of the injuries that will arise require a system that is able to balance the interests of physicians with single and multi-generational plaintiffs, while providing a realistic framework for courts to follow. This comment offers a brand-new context that accounts for these needs …

Foreword, Christina M. Nielsen

San Diego International Law Journal

The overwhelming reoccurring theme in this nineteenth edition of the San Diego International Law Journal centers on the international effects of recent domestic political changes in the United States. Whether a compelling factor or working in the background without express recognition, President Trump remains a point of interest in many of the articles published this academic year. Each article is distinct in legal policy and analysis and covers diverse legal topics.

Modern Application Of The Islamic Principle Of Brotherhood: An Assessment Of The Syrian Refugees’ Relocation Solution In Egypt, Shams Al Din Al Hajjaji

San Diego International Law Journal

This Article argues that the Islamic principle of Brotherhood provides a feasible basis to solve the Arab refugee crisis. The Islamic solution is based on relocating Syrian refugees to Egypt. The solution has many positive factors that make it the most promising solution among the various other proposed solutions. The Syrian refugee crisis has been one of the major challenges for many Western countries, who have found themselves between a rock and a hard place, faced with two options. The first option involves agreeing to host the massive waves of refugees, to honor their principles of human dignity and morality. …

Legal Responses To The European Union’S Migration Crisis, Graham Butler

San Diego International Law Journal

The European Union (“EU”) imposes on itself its own constraints in which it performs as an external actor, and yet, there is little acknowledgment of this imposed constraint. It is the post-2015 migration crisis, an unexpected occurrence, which has brought the fields of EU external relation law and EU migration law together. Europe’s external border, on both land and sea, has tightened through legal acts of non-traditional nature, namely, the resort to securitisation and militarisation. Challenges, such as mass irregular migration, require more than just individual responses from a few selected Member States that are directly affected by the issue. …

Regulating Fintech: Lessons From Africa, Anton Didenko

San Diego International Law Journal

Technological innovation in finance (“FinTech”) has been on the rise in recent years, creating new challenges for regulators. These challenges vary significantly depending on the region in question and type of economy, not least because different technologies are applied to tackle different problems. This Article focuses on regulatory frameworks of two leading jurisdictions in terms of FinTech development in Sub-Saharan Africa: Kenya and South Africa. As the developments in the region cannot be analyzed in isolation from the global trends in FinTech regulation, this Article approaches the matter systematically. It starts by clarifying the existing terminology and preparing a comprehensive …

The Uncertain Future Of Australia’S Pacific Solution, Chandra Roam

San Diego International Law Journal

The plight of a refugee is one that many of us will never understand. However, the ugly truth is that there is a global rise in the number of displaced persons seeking asylum. By the end of 2015, the number of displaced persons surpassed post World War II numbers, prompting developed nations around the world to enforce, amend, or implement policies targeted at controlling the flood of refugees at their borders. This Comment examines the policies of Australia, a nation that has had strict immigration policies in place for decades. Specifically, it discusses the Australian stance on refugee migration and …

V.19-2, 2018 Masthead

San Diego International Law Journal

No abstract provided.

International Regulatory Entrepreneurship: Uber’S Battle With Regulators In France, Domenic J. Martini

San Diego International Law Journal

Uber is a regulatory entrepreneur: a company that seeks to change the law in its favor. In the United States, Uber’s regulatory entrepreneurship changed the American taxi industry and the laws that regulate it. But the company’s venture into France presented unique challenges. This Comment examines Uber’s regulatory entrepreneurship in France and analyzes the factors that hindered Uber’s quest to revolutionize the French taxi industry. It discusses the tension between Uber and the French government and the policies behind both sides’ goals. It also seeks a compromise between Uber and the French regulators: one that acknowledges the issues with both …

V. 18-2, Spring 2017 Masthead

San Diego International Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Equitable Apportionment Of Shared Transboundary River Waters: A Case Study Of Modifications Of The Indus Waters Treaty, Waseem Ahmad Qureshi

San Diego International Law Journal

The principle of equitable utilization and the doctrine of equitable apportionment are regarded highly in customary international law for the apportionment of transboundary river waters between upper and lower riparian states. In this regard, the Indus Waters Treaty is an excellent example of the pragmatic implementation of the principle of equitable utilization, as well as of the principles of equity and justice. The treaty allottedthree eastern rivers to India and three western rivers to Pakistan in an attempt to equitably divide the shared Indus River basin and its five tributaries between the neighboring countries. However, India has now expressed an …

The European Union’S Competence On Foreign Investment: “New And Improved”?, Dominik Moskvan

San Diego International Law Journal

The general approach of the EU towards its trade and investment agenda changed in 2006 into a vigorous use of bilateral negotiations as the Union experienced opposition from emerging countries as well as the U.S. The use of bilateral agreements was seen as a reliable instrument to efficaciously realize the Union market power that was in decline. The future erosion of the EUs market position will likely continue and this will contribute to favoring the use of bilateral instead of multilateral trade agreements with the EU. However, as far as competence is concerned, should an investment treaty be signed in …

The First Competitive Video Gaming Anti-Doping Policy And Its Deficiencies Under European Union Law, Colby Stivers

San Diego International Law Journal

This Comment identifies the deficiencies of the ESL anti-doping regime and proposes solutions for compliance with international law. In addition to achieving compliance, the proposed solutions analyzed are selected to serve the values of eSports stakeholders, as well as the philosophical valuesof sports competition as a whole. Section II will identify those stakeholdersand values. Section III will identify and attempt to solve potential noncompliancewith EU treaty-based law under the European Convention on Human Rights and resolutions of the Council of Europe. Section IV will identify and propose solutions transposed from traditional sports anti-doping policies that address discrepancies with EU law …

The Dublin Regulation And Systemic Flaws, Jason Mitchell

San Diego International Law Journal

This Comment will discuss the systemic flaws in the Dublin Regulation and in the Member States asylum procedures, as well as the need for specificity in the definition of the systemic flaws; discussed in the Dublin Regulation. Section II will explain the history and source of obligation underlying the Dublin Regulation, and will also detail its development since its inception. Section III will explore the meaning of systemic flaws found in Article 3 of the Dublin Regulation. Section III will also discuss the cases decided by the European Court of Human Rights ( ECtHR ) and the European Court of …

Cuba Libre: A Verb? A Noun? Or A Cocktail?, Brian Eiselman

San Diego International Law Journal

This Article examines the nature of the history and origins of hostilities between the United States and Cuba leading up to the Embargo, and the Constitutional issue regarding the possible termination of the Embargo in view of the Helms-Burton Act. While President Kennedy enacted the Embargo unilaterally, the Helms-Burton Act usurped the power to regulate and conduct international affairs from the President, requiring a two-thirds Senate majority in order to lift or modify the Embargo.[] Arguably, this provision violates both the United States Constitution as well as International Law.[] Under the Obama Administration there was a new attitude towards Cuba, …

V.19-1, 2017 Masthead

San Diego International Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Vatican Condemnation Of Nazi War Crimes: Pope Pius Xii’S Denunciation Of Wartime Atrocities, Donald H. J. Hermann

San Diego International Law Journal

The debate on the silence of Pope Pius XII has been rekindled by recent close examination of the Pope’s 1942 Christmas Message denouncing totalitarianism and the killing of persons “only because of their nationality and race,” along with a particular condemnation of Marxist Socialism and a call for national and international relations to be based on natural law principles guaranteeing justice, order, and peace. In particular, Michael Phayer, a historian writing on the Vatican’s relation to the Holocaust, suggested a need for renewed attention to the 1942 Christmas Message. According to Phayer:

Historians . . . have been rather too …