In association with the International Commission of Jurists

General

22 Jul

According to the Associated Press: The United Nations' highest court says Kosovo's declaration of independence from Serbia did not break international law. The nonbinding opinion sets the stage for a renewed push by Kosovo for further international recognition of its independence. Reading the opinion Thursday, International Court of Justice President Hisashi Owada said international law contains no "prohibition on declarations of independence." ...

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21 Jul

CIA director Leon Panetta has named a new National Clandestine Service chief, reports Peter Finn in the Washington Post today.  The new chief, John Bennett, has been serving as station chief in Pakistan, overseeing in particular the expansion of the drone campaign carried out by the CIA there.  One can safely take that as further evidence that the Obama administration...

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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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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

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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