Just a quick note to flag for interested readers that Oxford has released a paperback version of my book, The Oxford Guide to Treaties. Happily, it is significantly cheaper than the hardback version -- it's listed for under $60 on Amazon right now. I hope that this edition will interest non-institutional buyers for whom the earlier price tag was a bit steep....
Last week, the U.S. Senate held confirmation hearings for Vice-Admiral Michael S. Rogers to replace General Keith Alexander as head of U.S. Cyber Command. It's interesting to see how both men received almost identical written questions in their respective 2014 and 2010 hearings. More interesting perhaps are the similarities and variations in their responses with respect to how international law operates...
I'm a bit pressed for time, but wanted to offer a brief post calling readers' attention to a US Supreme Court case that came down today -- Lozano v. Montoya Alvarez. In it, a unanimous Court interprets the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction to not allow equitable tolling of the requirement that a child be automatically...
I had the great pleasure the last several months to serve on ASIL's Book Awards Committee (along with Jutta Brunnée, Jean d’Aspremont, Saira Mohamed, and a very well organized chair in Jacob Cogan). I'm pleased to announce that the Society's Executive Council has selected three winners for 2014 based on our nominations. The winners (plus the Committee's accompanying citation) are as follows: Certificate...
I'm pleased to flag the fact that the American Journal of International Law has recently launched its own blog -- AJIL Unbound. Interested readers can find out more about the project and the Journal's interest in reader feedback here. In the meantime, AJIL Unbound is currently hosting an on-line discussion of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch...
We here at Opinio Juris were saddened to hear of the passing last week of Georgetown Professor Barry Carter. Our condolences go out to his friends and family. Georgetown Dean William Treanor has a tribute to Barry here. For my part, I've used Barry's textbook (which he originally authored with Philip Trimble, then Curt Bradley, and now Allen Weiner) ever since...
News out of Texas today that it executed Edgar Tamayo, a Mexican national, for killing a police officer, Guy Gaddis. Tamayo was one of the nationals Mexico named in the Avena case. Thus, he fell within the scope of the ICJ's order that the United States provide 'review and reconsideration' of the conviction and sentence of named Mexican nationals in light of the...
Well, it's not exactly a secret treaty in the sense that yesterday, the news wires were abuzz about the fact that the United States, Iran and five other world powers concluded an agreement to implement Iran's earlier November deal on its nuclear program. But, what's being held back is the actual text of the deal. There's not many details (the...
That's the punchline of a podcast Radiolab just released this week, provocatively titled "Sex, Ducks and The Founding Feud". Along with John Bellinger, Joseph Ellis and Nick Rosenkranz, I was interviewed for the story by Jad Abumrad and Kelsey Padgett. It was a fun experience overall trying to explain to a general audience the importance of the US treaty power and how...
A flurry of news today over the announcement that Iran has cut a deal with six major world powers -- the Permanent 5 members of the UN Security Council -- the US, Russia, China, France and the UK -- plus Germany. The text of the 'Joint Plan of Action' is also widely available (see here or here). My first reaction on...
On November 6, the United States signed the Minamata Convention on Mercury and deposited an instrument of acceptance indicating its consent to be bound by the treaty on its entry into force, making it the first nation to do so. Here's how UNEP summarizes the Convention: The Minamata Convention for Mercury is a global treaty to protect human health and the...
Lots of commentary today here and elsewhere on yesterday's oral arguments in Bond v. United States, with vote-counters quick to predict the Court will retreat from Missouri v. Holland and the question is only how much. I have views on the merits, but, frankly I'm having trouble getting passed the fact that two Supreme Court justices, the Solicitor General, and one of...
