In association with the International Commission of Jurists

July 2010

19 Jul

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit upheld this week the conviction of "Chuckie Taylor" for violating the U.S. Anti-Torture Act, which implements U.S. obligations under the Convention Against Torture. Taylor is the son of former Liberian President Charles Taylor, currently on trial himself in the Sierra Leone Special Court. The opinion is a good and important one...

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18 Jul

Greg McNeal has passed along the sad news that Charles Gittings, a long-time commenter on Opinio Juris, has passed away at an untimely 57.  Here is a snippet from his obituary in the Los Angeles Times: Though not a lawyer, Gittings had a life-long interest in military tactics and law that led him to become an invaluable resource to some...

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17 Jul

Yes, says Daniel Hannan, a journalist and British MEP.  At least under those famous Montevideo factors, now that the E.U. has recently acquired the capacity to sign treaties. I don't know if things are quite so easy. For one thing, the E.U. does not itself necessarily consider itself a state, and it is not exactly clear if other states recognize the...

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16 Jul

The showdown between the ICC and its prosecutor Moreno-Ocampo over the trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo continues, as the Court ordered Lubanga's release.  I assume Moreno-Ocampo will appeal (he has five days), but if his appeal is rejected, this could turn out to be a huge embarrassment for the prosecutor. In any event, it is certainly messy. Judges at the International Criminal...

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16 Jul

This web video nearly fooled people into believing France was about to pay Haiti billions in reparations for payments Haiti made to France ensure its independence. Yes, like that was going to happen. France quickly released a statement declaring the whole thing a hoax. This hoax was so well done that it leads me to wonder what other interesting statements could...

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15 Jul

The massive U.S. financial regulation legislation, known as "Dodd-Frank", is finally heading to President Obama for signature.  In addition to containing a partial reversal of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Morrison v. National Australia Bank, the bill also contains some rather stern instructions for the U.S. representative at the International Monetary Fund.  The instructions are so stern that they...

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14 Jul

The much-awaited ICJ advisory opinion on Kosovo will be released on July 22 at 3 p.m (local Hague time): On Thursday 22 July 2010, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, will deliver its Advisory Opinion on the question of the Accordance with International Law of the Unilateral Declaration of Independence by the Provisional...

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12 Jul

As I predicted, the Pre-Trial Chamber has approved genocide charges for Bashir: The International Criminal Court has issued a second arrest warrant for Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir - this time for charges of genocide. He already faces charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, which he denies. The ICC first indicted him in March 2009 but he has not...

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12 Jul

OK, I'll admit up front that this is a relatively narrow topic.  But I've written a chapter on the U.S. Supreme Court's approach to treaties from 1861 to 1900 (you can download it here).  The project's initial appeal was participating in this great conference last year at Santa Clara on the history of the Supreme Court and International Law.  Bill Dodge, Mike Ramsey...

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10 Jul

On her new article in the latest AJIL, "Power and Persuasion in Investment Treaty Interpretation: The Dual Role of States."  Although not the expert Roger and others are on investment law, I've read this closely and think it is a blockbuster article.  Anthea Roberts, currently a junior professor at LSE, is one of the brightest and best of the young-young...

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