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08 Nov The Application of the Principle of Precautions within the Context of Northern Gaza: A Reminder
military targets and civilian infrastructures can sometimes result in unintended damage, even with the utmost care. In such instances, the obligation adheres to what is deemed ‘feasible’ under the given circumstances, a term that will be elaborated on in the subsequent paragraph. The term ‘feasible’ introduces ambiguity, offering potential leeway for the attacking party to exploit the term by justifying measures based on contextual considerations. Nevertheless, any such interpretation can be countered by reverting to the primary objective of the provision, which is ‘to spare the civilian population, civilians, and...
12 Apr The Apartheid Reports: A Paradigm Shift on Israel/Palestine (Part I)
...does not exhaust the various aspects of apartheid. Well beyond the legal definitions, apartheid is also a political regime and a historical phenomenon. The growing public and academic debate about it is therefore much broader, involving political scientists, historians, sociologists, geographers and researchers from other fields in the increasing academic and public research and debate. Even the international conventions include two framings of apartheid: as a political regime and as an international crime. ICERD relates to governmental policies and hence a regime, and the Apartheid Convention and the Rome Statute...28 Mar Assassination and the Koh Speech
...engage in, or conspire to engage in, assassination.” President Reagan reissued the order in 1981 using identical language in EO 12333: “No person employed by or acting on behalf of the United States Government shall engage in, or conspire to engage in, assassination.” EO 12333 was amended by subsequent EO’s, but the specific assassination ban text remains unchanged. That said, the term “assassination” is never defined. Whole forests have fallen as commentators, in law reviews and elsewhere, have debated its meaning over decades, however. Does it refer to political leaders?...04 May Is Missouri v. Holland on a Near-Term Collision Course with the Supreme Court?
...Thus, there is no need to address the commerce power or cases limiting congressional power under the commerce power. Martin Holterman Indeed. The fact that the Treaty-making power is expressly given to the Federal government alone is key. Given that only the Feds make treaties, they have to have some way of keeping their promises. Since Medellin v. Texas closed the door on everything other than implementing statutes, it's implementing statutes that's left. If the states don't like it, they should muster up 34 senators to vote down the treaty....
22 Jul Space Law at the Crossroads: Contextualizing the Artemis Accords and the Space Resources Executive Order
...Intergovernmental Agreement (ISS-IGA). The moniker comes from NASA’s mission to land “the first woman and the next man” on the Moon by 2024. More recently, NASA has released its constitutive principles (Artemis Principles). The latest move follows President Trump’s Executive Order (EO) promulgated in April 2020 which recapitulates the US policy on commercial recovery and use of space resources. The Order clearly stated that the US does not view outer space as “a global commons”—a term used to signify extraterritorial spaces with common-pool resources. The Accord is consistent with the...21 May Common Law Immunity for Foreign Government Officers
...the nation’s long-term interest in promoting universal adherence to fundamental human rights norms. There are compelling separation-of-powers reasons why the courts should act as a check on this unfortunate, short-sighted bias of the State Department bureaucracy. The United States needs one branch of the federal government to adopt a long-term view, rather than a short-term view. The courts are well positioned to serve this function because they are insulated from short-term political pressures. The final objection to the proposed Harlow rule is that it is inconsistent with customary international law....
13 Aug Counseling the Prince: Reflections on the Art of Advising the State on International Law
...is an organic concept that is constantly evolving, always contested, and uniquely multidimensional across time and space. Specifically, a successful legal counsel ought to consider at least three possible forms or dimensions of state interest all of which are affected by international law. 1. Short-term gains & Long-term gains: Occasionally, a state, or its ruling elite, will determine that its interest is furthered by engaging in a transactionalist foreign policy, where every decision is a quid pro quo and every choice is dependent on whether instant benefits outweigh the immediate...
24 Jul About Humanness: Reconceptualizing the Taliban’s Treatment of Afghan Women as a Crime Against Humanity
of the Crime of Apartheid (ICSPCA) and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, both of which define apartheid as inhumane acts committed by one racial group against another. As such, applying the term “apartheid” to the gender segregation enforced by the Taliban would not align with the current legal framework, requiring a redefinition of the concept. Furthermore, there is a concern that using the term “apartheid” in this context may create a disconnect between its gravity and significance and the practical limitations in achieving desired outcomes under the...
21 Jul Underrepresentation in Genetic Databases, Intersectionality and the Right to Benefit From Scientific Progress
world in which individuals of non-European ancestry often also belong to communities that face ongoing marginalization and exclusion. Early large-scale genomic studies were disproportionately focused on individuals of European ancestry and structural discrimination and systemic racism have long contributed to the continued exclusion of marginalized populations from research. Barriers to healthcare, mistrust in participating in research because of historical transgressions, and explicit or implicit and inadvertent bias perpetuated by researchers and doctors (see notably disparities in genetic testing for breast and ovarian cancer) have all played a role in this...14 Mar Defining “Wrongful Retention” Under the HCCAICA
...a permitted visitation period has ended. Here we have the unique claim that the order of a state court prohibiting one parent from removing the child from its jurisdiction pending a custody determination is a wrongful retention under the Hague Convention. Neither the Hague Convention nor ICARA actually defines the term “retention.” Pielage, however, points us to Article V of the Hague Convention, which defines a parent’s “rights of custody” over a child as including “the right to determine the child’s place of residence.” Using that definition, Pielage contends that...