By: Zachary Outzen, J.D. ’22 (see full bio at end of article). Regarding universal healthcare, Americans seem to be longing […]
Exploring Evil with Dr. James Waller
Interviewed by: Rachel Sleiman ’23, Valerie Brankovic ’23, & Emma Cordes ’25 Written by: Rachel Sleiman ’23 In October 2022, […]
“Hope is not passive”: Constitutionalizing Youth Representation in Governance and Policymaking to Combat Climate Change
By Sharon Pia Hickey
The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance’s (“International IDEA”) “Global State of Democracy Report 2021” has recently described how, while the number of democracies is increasing, the quality of democratic governance has fallen. Covid-19, in particular, has exacerbated the fault lines that were widening before the pandemic struck. For many (especially in the Global North), the experience of lockdowns, restrictions, fear, and scarcity was the first taste of what life might be like under emergency conditions caused by climate change. While the jury is still out on how the world handled the pandemic, it is clear that innovation, solidarity, and commitment will be needed to sustain democracy in the face of the ever-increasing manifestations of climate change. [. . .]
Lebanese Journalist Dr. May Chidiac Keynotes William & Mary Law School’s Human Security Law Center Symposium on Media Freedom & Human Rights
By Rachel Sleiman
On Friday, January 28, 2022, William & Mary Law School’s Human Security Law Center held its annual symposium online, with this year’s topic centering on Media Freedom and Human Rights. The Symposium hosted experts from around the world to address various issues surrounding freedom of expression, hate speech, incitement, and digital media. This article is the first of a three-part series about the Symposium’s featured panel events. The Human Security Law Center welcomed renowned Lebanese journalist Dr. May Chidiac to open the Symposium as keynote speaker, which also featured Professor Jenik Radon of Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs (SIPA) as moderator. [. . .]
Comparative Free Speech: An Expert Roundtable Discussion at William & Mary Law School’s Human Security Law Center Symposium on Media Freedom & Human Rights
By Allison Lofgren
On Friday, January 28, 2022, Professor Nancy Combs and the Human Security Law Center at William & Mary Law School hosted a Symposium on Media Freedom & Human Rights. The second panel addressed comparative free speech issues and was moderated by Professor Timothy Zick, who is the John Marshall Professor of Government and Citizenship and the William H. Cabell Research Professor of Law at William & Mary Law School. He is one of the foremost experts on American freedom of speech law whose views routinely appear in the popular press, and he has published several dozen highly-regarded books and law review articles on the First Amendment.
The three panelists–Dr. Mart Susi, a Professor at Tallinn University in Estonia; Professor Ronald J. Krotoszynski, Jr. from the University of Alabama School of Law; and Michael R. Sherwin, a lawyer at Kobre & Kim–each discussed their perspective on the most pressing free speech issues in their respective areas of expertise. Throughout the panel, they primarily focused on various limitations on free speech in Europe and the United States. [ . . . ]
The Future of Media & Press Freedom Globally: A Discussion with Professor David Kaye at William & Mary Law School’s Human Security Law Center Symposium on Media Freedom & Human Rights
By Nancy Rosen
On Friday, January 28, 2022, Professor Nancy Combs and the Human Security Law Center hosted a Symposium on Media Freedom & Human Rights at William & Mary Law School.
For the final presentation, Professor David Kaye presented on the Future of Media & Press Freedom Globally, which also featured Professor Nancy Combs and law student Rachel Sleiman as moderators. Kaye focused on conceptualizing human rights and media through the international legal framework of Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), addressing three principal threats to media and press around the world—the legal redefinition of journalism, the increase of surveillance, and the rise of social media—and concluding with ways to move forward. [ . . . ]
Five Years of the Comparative Jurist: Reflections of Four Alumnae
The 2021-2022 academic year marks five years since the creation of the Comparative Jurist Blog by William & Mary law students. Two of the Blog’s current members interviewed four of its former members to learn about their experiences with the Comparative Jurist and how it has influenced their careers.
Enforceability of Intra-EU Arbitration Awards in the USA
By Ignacio Zabala Alonso
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has set the invalidity of intra-EU arbitration agreements, and the possibility of enforcing those intra-EU awards in the European Union. However, the enforceability of intra-EU awards outside the EU – for example, in the United States – is not clear. In order to understand the CJEU’s logic used to invalidate the intra-EU arbitration awards, we need to learn about the CJEU’s relevant decisions in this matter. […]
Making Ecocide an International Crime: A Discussion with Kate Mackintosh and the Human Security Law Center
By Rachel Sleiman
Director of the Promise Institute for Human Rights at the University of California-Los Angeles School of Law, about recent efforts to establish ecocide as an international crime and in particular as the fifth international crime within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC). [. . .]
Elections on Trial: Lessons on Enforcing Gender Equality Protection
By Regina Waugh, IFES Senior Global Gender Advisor With Contributors Linda “Ellie” Halfacre, Alexandra Brown, Patrick Quimby
For true democracy to exist, all citizens must have equal access to elections.[1] The International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which 173 countries are States Parties, makes clear that this includes equal access for women and men.[2] The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) explicitly promotes women’s political […]
Absent Justice: A proposal for trial in absentia after the death of the defendant in international human rights cases
By Alexandra M. Smith
In 2014, I worked as a research assistant at The National Security Archive. My supervisor built her career on using declassified documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act to bolster the prosecution in international human rights trials. [. . .]
Narrowing the Global Digital Divides: How Lawyers Can Help
By Louise D. Williams
In March 2020, no sooner had COVID-19 lockdowns begun sweeping the globe than the breadth of the world’s “digital divide” came into full view. The pandemic forced students, workers, and businesses worldwide to carve digital pathways toward business-as-usual-as-possible. They did so, respectively, by transitioning to online learning, endeavoring to work remotely (job-permitting), and increasing their investments in digital services and e-commerce[. . .]