Originalism’s Lesson for International Law (Or Why Grotius is not its Father)

Judge Barrett is set to become Justice Barrett. Throughout her nomination process, I have been quite fascinated by the discussion surrounding her originalist views and originalism in general. As someone not used to originalism as a theory of Constitutional interpretation (it has not really caught on in Peru), this added exposure has offered me some new perspectives I had not previously considered, including originalism’s identity...

[Chris Jenks is the Director of the Criminal Clinic and Associate Professor of Law at SMU Deadman School of Law.] How is ‘attack’ defined under international humanitarian law (IHL), particularly in the context of cultural property and hospitals? Opinio Juris readers will likely have already answered the first part of the question by referring to Article 49 of Additional Protocol I (AP I) to the 1949...

Events The International Nuremberg Principles Academy is pleased to announce and invite you to the launch of the third volume of the Nuremberg Academy Series, an anthology entitled The Tokyo Tribunal: Perspectives on Law, History and Memory edited by Viviane E. Dittrich, Kerstin von Lingen, Philipp Osten and Jolana Makraiová.  Join us for this online live event on 30 October 2020, from 10 a.m. -...

[Katharine Fortin is an Assistant Professor at Utrecht University where she teaches international humanitarian law and international human rights. Katharine has written widely about the legal framework in non-international armed conflicts and she is the author of The Accountability of Armed Groups under Human Rights Law (Oxford University Press, 2017)] Most of the literature studying what makes actors comply with international humanitarian law (IHL) has had...

According to Stephanie Maupas, in late July the chair of the Committee on the Election of the Prosecutor (CEP), Sabine Nölke, said the following concerning the Committee's vetting of candidates long-listed for Prosecutor: "I made the statement very clearly to the States Parties, the vetting process did not disclose any disqualifying information,” she said. The Canadian diplomat also asserted, not without...

In her post on Ensuring Respect for the Geneva Conventions: A More Common Approach to Article 1, Verity Robson discusses the ICRC’s recent commentaries to Common Article 1 (CA1) of the Third Geneva Convention (GC3) and argues, despite largely verbatim recitations of the previous two commentaries on the GCs by the ICRC, that this august body had finally removed some...

Sponsored Announcement The 2020 BIICL Annual WTO Conference: 22-23 October 2020 The British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL) is delighted to announce its prestigious WTO Conference. Established in 2000, the WTO Conference is one of the most important annual events in international trade law, addressing topical academic and practical issues. This is a pivotal moment for trade affairs and a critical time to take...

Announcements Announcing the new ANZSIL History and Theory of International Law Interest Group We are thrilled to announce the establishment of the ANZSIL History and Theory of International Law (HTIL) Interest Group. The new HTIL Interest Group has been established in response to the sustained growth of diverse and vibrant scholarship in the history and theory of international law. Scholars inspired by...

[Fajri Matahati Muhammadin is an Assistant Professor at the Department of International Law, Faculty of Law, Universitas Gadjah Mada (Indonesia).] Introduction War has always been an essential part of Islamic law and history. Jihad, the meaning of which is not limited to but includes physical armed warfare, is among the highly valued acts of worship in Islamic teachings. Since classical times, Islamic...

Events Global Law at Reading (GLAR) is delighted to unveil the programme for the 2020/21 Ghandhi Research Seminar Series. The series showcases the work of leading experts in global law fields. It is convened this year by Dr Marie Aronsson-Storrier and Dr Matthew Windsor, and is named in honour of Professor Sandy Ghandhi, who taught at the School of Law from 1978...

Featured Announcement: BIICL Training Courses Autumn 2020 The British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL) has a decade-long experience of running successful training courses. Its Public International law in Practice Course, as well as in house courses run for governments, judiciaries, civil society and others globally have earned a reputation for high level, research-informed training. During Autumn  2020 BIICL training is  moving to...

[Colleen Murphy is the Roger and Stephany Joslin Professor of Law and Professor of Philosophy and Political Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.] Ruti Teitel’s 2000 book, Transitional Justice,was and remains agenda-setting for scholars working in normative theory.  In this post I explain why and some of the ongoing debates whose origin can be traced to her work. Normative theories of justice specify what...