U.S. opponents of UNCLOS, whom I think have a number of quite sensible points, do need to explain how the U.S. is going to operate effectively in a world where all other major seafaring nations belong to the UNCLOS system. And they have offered decent arguments. Customary international law already guarantees navigational rights. Bilateral treaties, or even unilateral declarations, can...
Nicaragua may vote on a referendum on whether to seek damages from the U.S. arising out of the 1980s civil war. I have grave doubts about Nicaragua's ability to win such a claim (as well as its method of calculating damages), but it might be an interesting case. Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega has proposed a referendum on whether to demand $17bn...
Steven Groves of the Heritage Foundation passes along this useful review of the effect of UNCLOS ratification on U.S. development of its extended continental shelf. It argues that if the U.S. joins UNCLOS, it could be obligated to turn over as much as 7 percent of royalty revenue derived from development of its extended continental shelf to the International Seabed...
Or so it would seem, based on this analysis from the European Center for Law and Justice, a right-leaning public interest law firm. A proposed new law in Poland appears to ban abortion under any circumstance, thus replacing the current law, which allows exemptions for the mother's health and for cases of rape and incest. If, as the ECLJ argues,...
Though I am generally upbeat about the use of drones in military applications, one must recognize design flaws: The Navy's latest multi-million pound drone has the unfortunate feature of starting to self-destruct if the pilot accidentally presses the space bar on his keyboard ...
A quick note to suggest that those interested in intelligence and surveillance topics check out the latest issue of the Journal of National Security Law & Policy, which features a host of interesting articles on U.S. and international law and intelligence collection by folks like Geoff Stone, Craig Forcese, and Steve Vladeck. I’d especially recommend the piece by David...
Having just returned from Asia, which is awash in disputes over territorial sea rights and exclusive economic zones, the U.S. domestic debate over ratification of the Law of the Sea Convention seems almost quaint. Unlike pretty much every country in East Asia, the U.S. does not have any serious boundary or other kind of dispute that is likely to be...
The International Court of Justice issued a "provisional measures" order today in a dispute between Thailand and Cambodia over a World Heritage temple located near or on the boundary between the two nations. The request for provisional measures was brought by Cambodia, which sought the withdrawal of Thai troops from around the temple. The ICJ granted this request, but went...
The U.S. government has recently announced it will recognize the Benghazi authority as the "legitimate" government of Libya. But is it departing from international practice or the international law relating to statehood and recognition in order to do so? I have to admit I haven't followed the recognition of state vs. the recognition of government issue very closely (OK, not at...
Toby Landau, one of the leading arbitrators in the world, gave the keynote address at the recent ITA Workshop in Dallas and, as always, he was entertaining and provocative. One of the central themes of his discussion was how arbitration counsel fail to present a case in a manner sensitive to the needs of the arbitration panel. “Inequality...
As part of his ongoing war against the New York Times, Ben Wittes has a post today entitled "Seven Errors in Today's New York Times Editorial." I occasionally agree with Wittes' criticism of the NYT; the paper sometimes misstates the law when it criticizes the Obama administration. But there is nothing erroneous about today's editorial, and Wittes can only claim...
I've blogged about cyberthreats a lot this week. But, before we head into the weekend, I wanted to flag a Federalist Society Cyber Security Symposium, which an interested reader called to my attention. Now, the Symposium itself was held last month at Steptoe & Johnson in D.C., but the Federalist Society has since posted the proceedings in video form on-line. Readers...
