International Law
The Convention on Racial Discrimination: What Does It Means for U.S. Policy?
ACS hosted a briefing examining the ongoing discussion about, and potential federal legislative implication of, United States compliance with an international agreement on racial discrimination. The agreement is known as the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD). Panelists at May 9, 2008 briefing, including experts who participated in the recent proceedings in Geneva, described CERD and the CERD compliance process, discuss the CERD Committee's findings and recommendations, and explored the role that Congress could play to address U.S. compliance with CERD.
International and Foreign Law Sources: Siren Song for U.S. Judges?
Chimène I. Keitner
In International and Foreign Law Sources: Siren Song for U.S. Judges?, University of California, Hastings College of the Law Associate Professor Chimène I. Keitner, addresses the growing debate over the use of foreign and international law sources by U.S. judges engaged in constitutional adjudication. She begins by summarizing the attitudes towards international law sources exhibited by individual justices in the American legal system, noting that "one's opinion about the potential relevance of foreign and international law sources . . . depends in no small part on one's view of the role of judges in a constitutional democracy." Professor Keitner then examines the public opposition to the citation of foreign law sources in Lawrence v. Texas and Roper v. Simmons, which manifested itself in proposed legislation that would constrain how judges could interpret cases and prohibit the consideration of international law sources. Finally, Professor Keitner identifies three principled objections to the use of foreign and international law sources in constitutional adjudication, and responds to each in turn. Professor Keitner concludes, "Participating in international judicial dialogue should be viewed as a means of strengthening, not weakening, our commitment to the democratic values embodied in the U.S. Constitution."
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Keitner ACS issue brief.pdf | 286.94 KB |
Symposium on International Law and the Constitution: Terms of Engagement
On October 4-5, 2007 the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Fordham Law Review and the Fordham Leitner Center on International Law and Justice sponsored a two-day symposium entitled, "International Law and the Constitution: Terms of Engagement." The event was held at Fordham Law School in New York City.
This symposium brought together prominent scholars and advocates to grapple with central debates concerning the relationship between international law and the Constitution, and the implications of this relationship for human rights. Keynoting the symposium was Harold Hongju Koh, Dean of Yale Law School and Former Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor and Carol Anderson, Professor of History at University of Missouri-Columbia and Author, Eyes Off the Prize: The United Nations and the African American Struggle for Human Rights.
Transcript of "The State Secrets Privilege: Time for Reform?"
On April 4, 2008, ACS hosted a panel discussion of the state secrets privilege in light of executive assertions of the privilege and congressional consideration of legislation to statutorily define the privilege. Experts from a variety of perspectives explored issues Congress should consider as it weighs bipartisan reform legislation, including whether the state secrets privilege is being properly invoked and the appropriate balance of national security concerns with meaningful access to justice.
The panel featured:
- Justin Florence, Fellow, Georgetown Center for National Security and Law
- Aziz Huq, Director of the Liberty and National Security Project, Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law
- Richard Samp, Chief Counsel, Washington Legal Foundation
- Michael Vatis, Partner, Steptoe & Johnson LLP; formerly Director of the National Infrastructure Protection Center at the FBI and Special Counsel at the Department of Defense
- Ben Wizner, Staff Attorney, American Civil Liberties Union
- Moderator Jonathan Turley, Professor of Law, The George Washington University School of Law
Video of the event is available here.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| 2008-04-07 ACS State Secrets Privilege.doc | 297 KB |
Harold Koh Speaks on "International Law and the Constitution: Terms of Engagement" at Fordham Law School
On October 4-5, 2007 the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Fordham Law Review and the Fordham Leitner Center on International Law and Justice sponsored a two- day symposium entitled, "International Law and the Constitution: Terms of Engagement†at Fordham Law School. Prominent scholars and advocates grappled with central debates concerning the relationship between international law and the Constitution, and the implications of this relationship for human rights.
The event featured:
- Keynote speaker Harold Hongju Koh, Dean of Yale Law School and Former Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor.
A video of Professor Carol Anderson speaking at the conference is also available.
