I have some views, but they are not entirely solidified, so let me put this out as a question. France has recognized the the rebels as the sole legitimate representatives of the Libyan people, and withdrawn its recognition of the Qaddafi government. If that is so, what, if any, are the international law consequences of that recognition? I understand that many...
Although I support the Security Council referral of the Libya situation to the ICC, I do not have any degree of confidence that the ICC referral has not altered Moammar Qaddafi's negotiating or fighting posture at this time. I have no idea whether Qaddafi's state of mind (if you can even refer to it in normal psychology terms) has or...
Today's headline in the Wall Street Journal: Threat of Trial Keeps Gadhafi Fighting. Yes, because if the Security Council hadn't referred the situation in Libya to the ICC, Gadhafi would clearly have transferred power to the rebels in an orderly and peaceful fashion by now. Oh, well. I don't expect very much from the Wall Street Journal. After all, in the very same...
The Wall Street Journal reports that France "formally recognized Libya's main opposition group, the first country to do so." It is an excellent story and walks in brisk fashion through the latest moves in diplomacy and assessment of the military chances of the rebels. However, it is prudent at this point not to over-interpret the implications of this report about France. From...
Our friends at Columbia Law School have asked us to announce a one-day conference celebrating the legacy of the late Louis Henkin. The conference will be held on March 28 in Jerome Green Hall: 4:00-5:00 pm A Commemoration of the Life and Legacy of Louis Henkin, JGH 104 Judge Rosemary Barkett, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit Sarah...
I just received Anuradha Kumar's book "Human Rights: Global Perspectives" from interlibrary loan. Perhaps they should increase the salary for book binders. [caption id="attachment_15191" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption=""][/caption] ...
"Is Syria the next domino?" That's an official source asking, the State Department's e-diplomacy unit, tweeting under the somewhat awkward handle eDipAtState. Tweets from eDipAtState run the gamut, mostly re-tweets from other sources, but they suggestively tilt towards the next freedom fight. Iran, Ivory Coast, Zimbabwe, Belarus -- these are places were the US is on record as supporting change. But...
On March 7, a federal court in New York issued an anti-suit injunction order enjoining Ecuador plaintiffs from enforcing the $9 billion Ecuador judgment against Chevron. The injunction applies to all Ecuador plaintiffs and their counsel, including "directly or indirectly funding, commencing, prosecuting, advancing in any way, or receiving benefit from any action or proceeding, outside the Republic of...
The UN has just released its comments on the ILC’s set of 66 Articles on the Responsibility of International Organizations (“RIO”) as document A/CN.4/637/Add.1 (available on the ILC website). The commentary is interesting both for what it says and what it doesn’t say. It should be noted that the comments take a more conciliatory view of the ILC’s enterprise than a number...
First and most importantly, my sincere thanks to Marko Milanovic and Pierre-Hugues Verdier for taking the time to offer such careful and insightful reactions to my work. I’m extremely fortunate to have them as “virtual” colleagues, and I appreciate the efforts of the YJIL editors and folks at Opinio Juris in creating a forum for this online exchange. As Marko and...
First of all, I would like to thank Chimène for the opportunity to comment on “Rights Beyond Borders.” I have also had the opportunity to read Marko’s insightful comments, and I will refer to them later on. The article takes on a thorny question that constitutional courts around the world have faced in recent years: whether, and to...
Chimène Keitner has written a powerful article in ‘Rights Beyond Borders.’ She is right that there have been few comparative discussions of the extraterritorial reach of domestic (constitutional) protections of individual rights. Her piece goes a long way towards filling that gap. I am in complete agreement with Chimène that there is much to be learned from such a comparative...
