Many of you have probably seen the reviews of John Lewis Gaddis’ new biography, George F. Kennan: An American Life. John Gaddis was one of my mentors in college and graduate school, and I have really enjoyed seeing what I know to have been a labor of love reviewed so favorably. Congratulations John! Kennan, the man primarily known...
Over the last few months, as the eurozone crisis has gathered steam, I have wondered what the crisis means for the governance structures of the EU. One answer is, not much — the political leadership will somehow muddle through as it always does, on the basis of discretionary deals among the national leaders of European states. Then the institutional arrangements...
We have certain images in our minds about that first Thanksgiving. It usually involves bountiful harvests, amicable relations with the Indians, and prayerful thanksgiving to Providence for his manifold blessings. Well, it wasn’t quite that simple. Although there are various versions of the “first Thanksgiving,” one event that has a strong claim to it occurred at Plymouth, Massachusetts in the fall...
Many of you have probably already seen the fascinating story of how a North American Bird got the name of a European/Asian country. According to at least one explanation, the bird of the genus Meleagris that many of us will eat today first found its way to England, not via New World explorers and colonists but via Turkish traders...
In my prior post, I suggested that the standards for aiding and abetting liability and corporate liability that emerge (or don’t emerge) out of the jurisprudence of international criminal courts are best understood not as customary international law, but instead, as a form of international criminal common law. One initial reaction to this argument might be if these rules aren’t...
Much of my work focuses on international sources theory, not exactly the material for a scintillating, timely blogpost, and I initially thought I should probably spare you my thoughts on it. (As a footnote, an early draft of my entry-level job talk paper was titled, “Taking Opinio Juris Seriously.” I understand this had some of the OJ members on hiring...
Let me start by thanking Peggy and the whole OJ crew for inviting me to be a guest here. I very vividly remember the first time I found this blog, back when it had just gotten started (and was still at its previous address). It was among the very first law blogs I had seen, right around the...
Professor Harlan Cohen of the Univ. of Georgia Law School will be guest blogging with us for the next few weeks. Among his other achievements prior to joining the UGA faculty in 2007, Harlan was a Furman Fellow at NYU Law School and on the staff at Foreign Affairs. He teaches and writes in international law in the U.S, international legal...
Please forgive the fact that this post has nothing to do with international law, but it's something very personal and very important to me. As Jonathan Adler noted today at Volokh Conspiracy, the California Supreme Court will soon decide whether Stephen Glass, the former New Republic journalist who was caught inventing stories, should be permitted to practice law: Glass was fired...
Over at Lawfare, I have posted a brief review of three books on international law, war, and counterterrorism, with a particular focus on the changing shape of counterterrorism through drone warfare and targeted killing. These are all excellent books and I commend them to the scholarly community. Noam Lubell, Extraterritorial Use of Force Against Non-State Actors (Oxford 2010) Kimberley N. Trapp, State Responsibility for...
Here is a nice example of how international organizations and international lawyers can conspire to make international law seem ridiculous. Bus and subway workers had a right to strike in 2005 and their leader was wrongly jailed, a United Nations agency has found. The International Labor Organization said the state’s Taylor Law, which makes it illegal for public workers in New York...
[Note from ed.: This is the final commentary on Kevin Heller's book,The Nuremberg Military Tribunals and the Origins of International Criminal Law. Earlier commentaries can be found under the "related posts" link below and at the companion discussion of the book at EJIL: Talk!] Jurists, legal scholars and historians – groups that often find much to disagree about – appear unified...
