The New Terrain of International Law

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen J. Alter
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
The Political ◽  
International Courts ◽  
Constitutional Review ◽  
Delegation Of Authority ◽  
The World ◽  
The Law

In 1989, when the Cold War ended, there were six permanent international courts. Today there are more than two dozen that have collectively issued over thirty-seven thousand binding legal rulings. This book charts the developments and trends in the creation and role of international courts, and explains how the delegation of authority to international judicial institutions influences global and domestic politics. The book presents an in-depth look at the scope and powers of international courts operating around the world. Focusing on dispute resolution, enforcement, administrative review, and constitutional review, the book argues that international courts alter politics by providing legal, symbolic, and leverage resources that shift the political balance in favor of domestic and international actors who prefer policies more consistent with international law objectives. International courts name violations of the law and perhaps specify remedies. The book explains how this limited power—the power to speak the law—translates into political influence, and it considers eighteen case studies, showing how international courts change state behavior. The case studies, spanning issue areas and regions of the world, collectively elucidate the political factors that often intervene to limit whether or not international courts are invoked and whether international judges dare to demand significant changes in state practices.

The Authority of Vattel

1913 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 395-410 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles G. Fenwick
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
International Law ◽  
The Political ◽  
Law Of Nations ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Law ◽  
History Of International Law ◽  
Political Philosopher

There is no more significant commentary on the growth of international law, both in precision and in comprehensiveness, than an estimate of the relative authority of the name of Vattel in the world of international relations a century ago and in that of today. A century ago not even the name of Grotius himself was more potent in its influence upon questions relating to international law than that of Vattel. Vattel's treatise on the law of nations was quoted by judicial tribunals, in speeches before legislative assemblies, and in the decrees and correspondence of executive officials. It was the manual of the student, the reference work of the statesman, and the text from which the political philosopher drew inspiration. Publicists considered it sufficient to cite the authority of Vattel to justify and give conclusiveness and force to statements as to the proper conduct of a state in its international relations.At the present day the name and treatise of Vattel have both passed into the remoter field of the history of international law. It is safe to say that in no modern controversy over the existence and force of an alleged rule of international law would publicists seek to strengthen the position taken by them by quoting the authority of Vattel. As an exposition of the law of nations at a given period of its growth, the work can, it is true, lose nothing of its value, but in saying that it has thus won its place irrevocably among the classics of international law, we are merely repeating that it has lost its value as a treatise on the law of the present day.

The New Terrain of International Law

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen J. Alter
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
International Politics ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
Paradigm Change ◽  
International Courts ◽  
Design Changes ◽  
Domestic Courts ◽  
The Creation ◽  
The Law

This chapter explains the book's threefold goal. First, it reveals a paradigm change in creating and using international courts (ICs), leading to the creation of the new international judicial architecture. Second, the book conceptualizes how new-style ICs affect domestic and international politics across countries, courts, cases, and issues. An international court's political influence comes from its authority to say what the law means for the case at hand, its jurisdiction to name violations of international law, and its ability to specify remedies that follow from international legal violations. Finally, the book aims to create nonutopian and thus more realistic expectations for ICs. This research builds on theories developed in the study of domestic courts and uses the presence of similarly designed ICs, of cross-time design changes, and variations in the influence of the same ICs across countries.

Information Component of Disintegration Processes in Spain and Great Britain: the Comparative Aspects

2019 ◽  
pp. 142-154
Author(s):  
Vasyl Karpo ◽  
Nataliia Nechaieva-Yuriichuk
Keyword(s):  
World War I ◽  
Practical Interest ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
World Politics ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Political Propaganda ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
The World ◽  
Ancient Times

From ancient times till nowadays information plays a key role in the political processes. The beginning of XXI century demonstrated the transformation of global security from military to information, social etc. aspects. The widening of pandemic demonstrated the weaknesses of contemporary authoritarian states and the power of human-oriented states. During the World War I the theoretical and practical interest toward political manipulation and political propaganda grew definitely. After 1918 the situation developed very fast and political propaganda became the part of political influence. XX century entered into the political history as the millennium of propaganda. The collapse of the USSR and socialist system brought power to new political actors. The global architecture of the world has changed. Former Soviet republic got independence and tried to separate from Russia. And Ukraine was between them. The Revolution of Dignity in Ukraine was the start point for a number of processes in world politics. But the most important was the fact that the role and the place of information as the challenge to world security was reevaluated. The further annexation of Crimea, the attempt to legitimize it by the comparing with the referendums in Scotland and Catalonia demonstrated the willingness of Russian Federation to keep its domination in the world. The main difference between the referendums in Scotland and in Catalonia was the way of Russian interference. In 2014 (Scotland) tried to delegitimised the results of Scottish referendum because they were unacceptable for it. But in 2017 we witness the huge interference of Russian powers in Spain internal affairs, first of all in spreading the independence moods in Catalonia. The main conclusion is that the world has to learn some lessons from Scottish and Catalonia cases and to be ready to new challenges in world politics in a format of information threats.

Is International Law International?

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthea Roberts ◽  
Martti Koskenniemi
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
South China ◽  
Visual Representations ◽  
International Lawyer ◽  
Spheres Of Influence ◽  
Diverse Backgrounds ◽  
The World ◽  
Anglo American

Is International Law International? takes the reader on a sweeping tour of the international legal academy to reveal some of the patterns of difference, dominance, and disruption that belie international law’s claim to universality. Both revealing and challenging, confronting and engaging, this book is a must-read for any international lawyer, particularly in a world of shifting geopolitical power. Pulling back the curtain on the “divisible college of international lawyers,” the author shows how international lawyers in different states, regions, and geopolitical groupings are often subject to differences in their incoming influences and outgoing spheres of influence in ways that affect how they understand and approach international law, including with respect to contemporary controversies like Crimea and the South China Sea. Using case studies and visual representations, the author demonstrates how actors and materials from some states and groups have come to dominate certain transnational flows and forums in ways that make them disproportionately influential in constructing the “international”—a point which holds true for Western actors, materials, and approaches in general, and Anglo-American ones in particular. But these patterns are set for disruption. As the world moves past an era of Western dominance and toward greater multipolarity, it is imperative for international lawyers to understand the perspectives of those coming from diverse backgrounds. By taking readers on a comparative tour of different international law academies and textbooks, the author encourages international lawyers to see the world through others’ eyes—an approach that is pressing in a world of rising nationalism.

The Rights and Obligations of States in Disputed Maritime Areas

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Youri van Logchem
Keyword(s):  
South China Sea ◽  
International Law ◽  
South China ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Comprehensive Treatment ◽  
International Courts ◽  
Judicial Decisions ◽  
Commercial Activities ◽  
State Practice ◽  
The World

Disputed maritime areas exist around the world, and in many cases the affected States have not been able to reach agreement on cooperative arrangements or regulate commercial activities within the area. Where a claimant coastal State increases their level of unilateral activity, such as in the South China Sea, long-standing conflicts remain difficult to resolve. This book examines the rights and obligations States have under international law concerning disputed maritime areas in the first comprehensive treatment of this highly topical and pressing issue. It analyses conventional law, general international law, judicial decisions, State practice and academic opinions that shine light on the international legal framework applicable in disputed maritime areas. Proposing practical solutions for interpreting and applying the applicable international law, the book discusses the extent to which it currently provides clear guidance to States, and how international courts and tribunals have dealt with cases related to disputed maritime areas.

Paradigm Shift for the Future

2021 ◽  
pp. 173-201
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
Political Events ◽  
The Social ◽  
The World ◽  
The Future ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
The Way

Through case studies of incidents around the world where the social media platforms have been used and abused for ulterior purposes, Chapter 6 highlights the lessons that can be learned. For good or for ill, the author elaborates on the way social media has been used as an arbiter to inflict various forms of political influence and how we may have become desensitized due to the popularity of the social media platforms themselves. A searching view is provided that there is now a propensity by foreign states to use social media to influence the user base of sovereign countries during key political events. This type of activity now justifies a paradigm shift in relation to our perception and utilization of computerized devices for the future.

Hague Conventions on Private International Law

2019 ◽  
pp. 239-272
Author(s):  
V.C. Govindaraj
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Hague Convention ◽  
Active Member ◽  
Private International Law ◽  
Conflict Of Laws ◽  
World Community ◽  
Child Abduction ◽  
The World ◽  
The Hague ◽  
The Law

The world has to acknowledge the contribution the Hague Conference on Private International Law has hitherto made and continues to make in its endeavour to obtain from the world community approval and acceptance of the outcome of its efforts to unify rules of conflict of laws. India has become an active member of the Hague Conference. This chapter discusses the recognition of decrees of divorces and judicial separation and maintenance obligations; child custody and child abduction; the law relating to succession; the law relating to service of summons abroad; Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents, 1961; and Hague Convention on Taking of Evidence Abroad in Civil or Commercial Matters, 1970.

The Machinery of International Law and Democratic Backsliding

2021 ◽  
pp. 136-146
Author(s):  
Tom Ginsburg
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
International Law ◽  
Term Limits ◽  
Constitutional Court ◽  
Constitutional Amendments ◽  
The World ◽  
International Rights ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
The Law ◽  
The Right

This chapter focuses on the abuse of international rights to political participation so as to facilitate a leader's remaining in office beyond the constitutionally mandated term. This involves not only the abuse of the interpretation of rights, but also the abuse of the doctrine of unconstitutional constitutional amendments, which has spread around the world in recent years. How does this happen and what, if anything, can international law do about it? After introducing a motivating case — the famous decision of the Colombian Constitutional Court in the second re-election decision, in which courts stood for the protection of democracy — the chapter examines recent 'bad' cases in which rights and constitutional amendments are abused to extend leaders' terms. It surveys recent developments in the law of term limits, and briefly proposes a normative interpretation of the right to political participation which ought to be consistent with the emerging doctrine. The chapter suggests that there is an emerging consensus, at least in some regions of the world, that there are limits in states' ability to modify term limits unconditionally.

18. The law of the sea

2019 ◽  
pp. 468-493
Author(s):  
Gleider Hernández
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Basic Concept ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
Economic Resource ◽  
Public International Law ◽  
The World ◽  
The Law ◽  
Bodies Of Water ◽  
High Seas

This chapter explores the law of the sea. The ‘law of the sea’ is a blanket term, describing the law relating to all bodies of water, irrespective of whether they are subject to the jurisdiction of a State. Naturally, the seas are tremendously important globally; the seas are a crucial means of communication and trade, allowing for the transport of persons and goods around the world. The seas and their subsoil are also a valuable economic resource. However, the law of the sea is not also important for its significant contributions to public international law. The law of the sea governs a series of overlapping sovereign interests and projections of jurisdiction. The basic concept is that the sea is divided into two broad categories: territorial sea and high seas. The exact line between these two has been at the heart of more than four centuries of legal developments and disputes.

Tipping the Balance: International Courts and the Construction of International and Domestic Politics

2011 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Karen J Alter
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
International Law ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Tipping Point ◽  
Legal Institutions ◽  
International Courts ◽  
State Compliance ◽  
Point Argument

Abstract The proponents of international courts (ICs) expect that creating formal legal institutions will help to increase respect for international law. International relations scholars question such claims, since ICs have no tools to compel state compliance. Such views are premised on the notion that states have unique preferences that ICs must satisfy in order to be effective. The tipping point argument is premised on the notion that within each state are actors with numerous conflicting preferences. ICs can act as tipping point actors, building and giving resources to compliance constituencies—coalitions of actors within and outside of states—that favour policies that happen to also be congruent with international law.

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