Search: self-defense
27 Jan In Defense of Minimalism: A Response to Vlad Perju
...“inspiration” from the various “constitutional traditions common to the Member States” (as the Court puts it), the Court has begun to develop a jurisprudence of “general principles of law,” in order to redeem the EU’s self-conception as a “community based on the rule of law.” Those principles—developed by the Court sua sponte—have enabled the Court to incorporate, within “the structure and aims of the Community,” the substance of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), as well as fundamental rights protected by national constitutions. The Court must decide crucial social...09 Oct Schoolyard Terrorism: People v. Campbell
...merely an artistic expression of Casey’s. The defense and prosecution will each present witnesses, expert testimony, and physical evidence to support their arguments. The pretrial issue involves the First Amendment’s provisions governing freedom of speech and expression. It focuses on the constitutionality of the School Violence in Video Games statute, which prohibits the possession of certain types of video games. The defense asserts that the statute is unconstitutional. First, the defense argues that video games are a form of protected expression because they contain expressive elements entitled to First Amendment...25 Jun In Defense of Britney. (Really.)
Joe Film casting is so rarely done with any logic in mind. Look at Zang Ziyi being cast in "Memoirs of a Geisha". The Japanese community was terribly offended. But Hollywood studio executives don't really care about accuracy or even political correctness. Their main goal is to fill theater seats with people, and Britney Spears will do that. Anderson I think Britney took that <a href="http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/b101256_kate_winslets_prophetic_joke_holocaust.html">Kate Winslet self-spoof</a> too seriously. Anderson Oops, dunno how that hoppened. M. Gross I see no way this could possibly end in tragedy. Time Travel,...08 Aug A Partial Defense of Hamdan and Judge Roberts
I also want to welcome Professor D’Amato to Opinio Juris. And, in the typical Opinio Juris fashion, I want to welcome him by immediately taking exception to some of the arguments he put forward in his inaugural post. I agree that Judge Roberts should be held responsible for the D.C. Circuit’s decision in Hamdan as much as if he had written the opinion for the Court. I simply don’t find that decision as troubling as Professor D’Amato seems to. First, I guess I don’t find the D.C. Circuit’s...26 Jul International Law in the U.S. Supreme Court: A Partial Defense of “Insider Doctrinal History”
...What’s missing, in short, is society.” (p. 173) For Witt, what’s required instead is a social history of the Court and international law. What should we make of this critique? Based on my previous post worrying that the social, political, and cultural context of the Court’s work might be obscured by the book’s grand narrative, one might expect me to agree with Witt. And at a certain level, I do. In fact, I’ve previously made a call for exactly that kind of social history myself. And yet, I can’t help...20 Sep Detention in NIAC — A Reply to Wittes and Chesney (and a Defense of Vladeck)
...geographically connected to a NIAC. Wittes and Chesney’s claim that those rules permit the detention of anyone who “materially support” terrorism is still questionable. Most importantly, nothing in conventional IHL explicitly authorizes detaining anyone in NIAC. Common Article 3 and the Second Additional Protocol impose restrictions on how detainees can be treated; they do not authorize detention itself. That does not mean, of course, that IHL is silent concerning detention in NIAC. It is still possible that such detention is inherent in conventional IHL or that there is a customary...30 Jan Investment Protection in Extraordinary Times: A Reply to Professor Franck
...fall within the scope of the NPM clause from the substantive protections of the BIT and thereby preclude liability. Professor Franck is correct to note that in most cases the affirmative defense of necessity in customary international law should be unnecessary where a BIT contains an NPM clause. More specifically, where a treaty contains an NPM clause of comprehensive scope, the narrow necessity defense under customary law will generally not become relevant. NPM clauses are generally drafted to provide states greater flexibility to respond to emergency situations than would have...