Search: crossing lines
13 Aug Climate Wars and Jus ad Bellum: Part I
...under Art. 42 of the Charter. When that fails, it is not that large of a leap to imagine states claiming a collective but unilateral right to threaten or use force against climate rogue states. Even just establishing the putative validity of such acition will be considered important as a means of shaping rogue state behavior. Force would be seldom if ever used, just as it has been rarely used against nuclear rogue states—and if used, it would be surgical strikes along the lines of the Israeli Osirak action in...
13 Aug Climate Wars and Jus ad Bellum: Part II
...Security Council is unlikely to authorize any use of force against climate rogue states, not least because many of the permanent members are among the worst contributors to climate change. There will be calls for other avenues of approval, such as through the General Assembly, along the lines of the Uniting for Peace Resolution. But we may also predict that there will be increasing pressure to expand the exceptions to the prohibition on the use of force in the jus ad bellum regime, either by relaxing the conditions for self-defense,...
01 Aug Options for a Peace Settlement for Ukraine: Option Paper XII – A Dynamic Political Settlement: Adapting to the Evolving Post-agreement Context
...recurrence of conflict can be avoided. For instance, one of the major stumbling blocks in the implementation of the Minsk agreements, was parties’ competing interpretation of the sequencing of local elections, with the central government claiming that such steps can only be undertaken following a full withdrawal of foreign forces, while Russia maintained that elections ought to be held without delay. Such avenues ought to include a clear alternative pathway out of a deadlock created by an inability to adhere to settlement timelines (‘fall-back mechanism’). While such timelines are critical...
10 Jul Conclusion to the Symposium on Art, Aesthetics and International Justice: The New Geometries of International Justice
...and suggestive of further discussion. There are three groups of comments that I want to address. Firstly, Tianying refers to the need for more research into the non-visual fields of perception and how they relate to international justice. Along similar lines, Elizabeth discusses the power of justice to move, speak and sing in some African traditions. Secondly, Jed and Sofia mention the often-held assumption that art belongs to the domain of the elites or, in the language of marketing, is a ‘nice to have’ and not an essential in rebuilding the...
25 Nov The Israeli Settlements Debate: Is the Creation and Enforcement of the International Norms a Multilateral or Bilateral Issue?
...bilateralism path comes with a caveat. No red lines of international legality should be passed as these are most notably marked by jus cogens norms. Moreover, States should be aware that the bilateralism path is slippery and can ultimately undermine humanity’s efforts to establish law and order in the international scene, having wider implications on the incentives of States to obey rules and decisions promoted by international multilateral bodies. To the extent that States know that, irrespective of what is decided in international fora, governments can get out of the...07 Sep Departing from Peace-time Standards – the Prosecutors’ Perspectives
...courts are incapable of trying those accused of terrorist acts. The positions of proponents and opponents fall mostly along party lines. Conservatives favor some form of special-purpose tribunal to the unprecedented challenges. Progressives play down the novelty of the al Qaeda threat. But what do experienced professionals think? In this case, this means prosecutors with relevant experience. On Monday, the New York City Bar will host a discussion to illuminate this question. What has been the experience of trying accused terrorists in federal district courts? Former US Attorney Mary Jo...
08 Aug The Trial Judgment in Yekatom and Ngaïssona: A Judgment of Many Firsts Built on Case Management (Part 1)
...been a team effort (including legal officers) along the lines of the Guidelines for ICC Judgment Drafting (Annex to the Chambers Practice Manual, see especially paras. 25 et seq.). A second example is the decision of the TC to “render any potential decision on sentencing pursuant to Article 76 of the Statute simultaneously with its judgment under Article 74 of the Statute” (Decision on Sentencing Procedure, para. 2). It has been the preferred option at the ICC so far to hold a separate sentencing hearing, which prolonged the proceedings (for...15 Oct Kavanaugh Appointment Foreshadows Looming Crisis for the Rule of Law
...Bar Association, which had previously rated Justice Kavanaugh “well qualified” felt it necessary to re-open its evaluation in light of the issues of “temperament” raised by the Senate hearing; the Senate did not wait for the outcome of this re-evaluation before moving to a final vote. This most recent spectacle illustrates a longer trend through which votes on Supreme Court appointments have over the years generally tended to become more and more divided on party lines (see: here and here.) In some cases, this has been due to party politics...21 Oct Borderline History at Borderline Jurisprudence: Some Thoughts on Anne Orford’s International Law & the Politics of History (Part II)
as I said before, solve the Orford-Skinner or the Orford-Hunter Debate. Like all Great Debates, we may end up reading and re-reading them for many years to come. But I do hope that in these lines I may offer a different perspective on how to approach them: not as the expression of a necessary methodological incompatibility between our disciplines, but as a pool of wisdom from which to extract valuable lessons in the construction of our interdisciplinary common future – one where historians see law as language and where lawyers...01 Sep Syria Insta-Symposium: Did Obama Consult His Lawyers Before War Powers About-Face?
Doesn’t sound like it, if you read between the lines of this AP account. Until Friday, everyone was assuming that congressional pre-clearance was not constitutionally required or otherwise warranted. Obama’s national security team was in agreement that while consulting with Congress was critical, there was no need for formal approval, officials said. Seeking a vote in Congress to authorize a strike wasn’t even an option on the table. You have to guess there were memos to that effect bouncing around State and Justice. Obama turned around on a dime after...