In association with the International Commission of Jurists

Social Ostracism and Non-State Governance: A Comment on Hathaway & Shapiro

15 Nov

I read Scott's and Oona's article Outcasting with great pleasure.  It is a wonderful contribution to the burgeoning literature on legal pluralism and non-state governance.  In particular, the article contests two propositions that have undermined recognition of various forms of non-state law: first, that law must be enforced by the legal regime itself; and second, that law must be enforced through...

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15 Nov

We want to thank Gary and Samantha for offering such interesting insights.  We will not be able to do them justice, but let us at least offer a few brief words in response. In his latest post, Gary calls on us to say more about when outcasting will be effective at changing state behavior, calling for both process tracing and empirical...

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15 Nov

Oona and Scott's article is meant to be an opening salvo. But it would be helpful to see more positive empirical evidence. I don't just mean that I'd like to see more cases of non-traditional enforcement than medieval Iceland and classical canon law, although I would, and I'm sure Oona and Scott would too. (Still, has there ever been a...

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15 Nov

Thanks to Duncan and Opinio Juris for the chance to discuss this work, and thanks to Oona and Scott for writing it. This is a wonderful article, provocative and learned, bursting with fresh thinking and rich in empirical observation. It was a pleasure to read. There's a wealth of stuff to discuss. I agree, both positively and normatively, with treating international...

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15 Nov

In their article Outcasting: Enforcement in Domestic and International Law, Oona Hathaway and Scott Shapiro make a seminal contribution to the study of the legality of international law. Their piece is not only a direct contribution to the burgeoning field of philosophy of international law, but it also participates in and deepens an important conversation within the field of general jurisprudence...

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13 Nov

Readers know all too well where my sympathies lie regarding WikiLeaks and Julian Assange.  But I have to admit, I'm baffled by the paranoid reaction my fellow WikiSupporters are exhibiting in the wake of Assange's latest failure to block his extradition to Sweden to face sexual-assault charges.  Exhibit A, from the usually invaluable WL Central: The possibility of criminal charges against...

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13 Nov

As readers may know, Israel's Knesset is currently considering two laws designed to prevent foreign governments and international organizations from funding progressive Israel human-rights groups: one that drastically limits the amount of funding such groups could receive, and one that imposes a tax of nearly 50% on foreign funds received by human-rights groups that do not receive Israeli funding (i.e.,...

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10 Nov

There are many reasons to demand closing Guantanamo Bay and ending the military commissions, such as the government's tendency to invent armed conflicts in order to convict defendants of imaginary war crimes.  But even if you don't care about the integrity of international humanitarian law or the coherence of the American approach to that body of law, you should still...

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10 Nov

[Robert E. Williams, Jr. is an associate professor of political science at Pepperdine University and an expert on corruption in Equatorial Guinea]. The other shoe has dropped in the U.S. Government’s corruption case against Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue. Last week, a civil forfeiture complaint was unsealed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California as a second...

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10 Nov

Here is a story that no one (here in the U.S. anyway) is paying attention to: Russia’s accession to the WTO cleared a major hurdle when the WTO Working Party on its accession approved, ad referendum on 10 November 2011, the package spelling out Russia’s terms of entry to the organization. The Working Party will now send its accession recommendation to...

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10 Nov

The Naval War College has published the latest volume in its Blue Book series.  Here is the description and information about how to obtain it (although you can simply get the PDF here): The Naval War College International Law Department recently published volume 87 of its International Law Studies "Blue Book"  series.  The Blue Book has served as...

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