Friday, January 31, 2020

Save the Dates: Upcoming AALS Annual Meetings

AALS LogoThe Association of American Law Schools will hold its 2021 Annual Meeting in San Francisco from Tuesday, January 5, 2021 to Saturday, January 9, 2021.

The AALS will hold its 2022 Annual Meeting in New York from Wednesday, January 5, 2022 to Sunday, January 9, 2022.

(mew)

January 31, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Monday, January 27, 2020

AALS Art Law Section

AALS LogoThe Association of American Law Schools Section on Art Law has announced its officers and executive committee members for 2020-2021. They are:

Officers

  • Chair: Christine Haight Farley, Professor, American University Washington College of Law
  • Chair-Elect: Jorge Contreras, Professor, University of Utah, S.J. Quinney College of Law

Executive Committee:

  • Yvette Joy Liebsman, Professor, St. Louis University School of Law
  • Peter Karol, Professor, New England Law
  • Deborah Gerhardt, Professor, University of North Carolina School of Law
  • Irene Calboli, Professor, Texas A&M University School of Law

(mew)

January 27, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thursday, January 23, 2020

The ICJ indicates provisional measures to protect the Rohingya in Myanmar

Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide

(The Gambia v. Myanmar)

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) granted some provisional measures today in its Order on the Request for the indication of provisional measures submitted by the Republic of The Gambia in the case concerning Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (The Gambia v. Myanmar).

ICJ CourtroomOn 11 November 2019, the Republic of The Gambia filed proceedings against the Republic of the Union of Myanmar concerning alleged violations of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (“Genocide Convention”). The Gambia argued that Myanmar has committed and continues to commit genocidal acts against members of the Rohingya group, which it describes as a “distinct ethnic, racial and religious group that resides primarily in Myanmar’s Rakhine State.” The Application contained a Request for the indication of provisional measures, seeking to preserve, pending the Court’s final decision in the case, the rights of the Rohingya group in Myanmar, of its members and of The Gambia under the Genocide Convention.

The ICJ may indicate provisional measures only if the provisions relied on by the Applicant appear, prima facie, to afford a basis on which its jurisdiction could be founded. The ICJ must also satisfy itself that the rights whose protection is sought are at least plausible and that there is a link between those rights and the measures requested. The ICJ will indicate provisional measures only if there is a real and imminent risk that irreparable prejudice will be caused to the rights in dispute before the ICJ gives its final decision.

In view of the fundamental values sought to be protected by the Genocide Convention, the ICJ considered that the right of the Rohingya group in Myanmar and of its members to be protected from killings and other acts threatening their existence as a group, are of such a nature that prejudice to them could cause irreparable harm.

ICJ Peace PalaceThe ICJ noted in its order that the reports of the Fact-Finding Mission have indicated that, since October 2016, the Rohingya in Myanmar have been subjected to acts which are capable of affecting their right of existence as a protected group under the Genocide Convention, such as mass killings, widespread rape and other forms of sexual violence, as well as beatings, the destruction of villages and homes, denial of access to food, shelter and other essentials of life. The Court is of the opinion that the Rohingya in Myanmar remain extremely vulnerable, observing in particular that the Fact-Finding Mission concluded in September 2019 that the Rohingya people remained at serious risk of genocide.

The ICJ noted that Myanmar stated during the oral proceedings that it is engaged in repatriation initiatives to facilitate the return of Rohingya refugees present in Bangladesh and that it intends to promote ethnic reconciliation, peace and stability in Rakhine State, and to make its military accountable for violations of international humanitarian and human rights law. In the view of the Court, however, these steps do not appear sufficient in themselves to remove the possibility that acts causing irreparable prejudice to the rights invoked by The Gambia for the protection of the Rohingya in Myanmar could occur.

In light of these considerations, the Court finds that there is a real and imminent risk of irreparable prejudice to the rights invoked by The Gambia. The ICJ concluded that the conditions required by its Statute for it to indicate provisional measures were met, and it indicated the following provisional measures:

“(1) Unanimously,

The Republic of the Union of Myanmar shall, in accordance with its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, in relation to the members of the Rohingya group in its territory, take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II of this Convention, in particular:

(a) killing members of the group;

(b) causing serious bodily or mental harm to the members of the group;

(c) deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; and

(d) imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

(2) Unanimously,

The Republic of the Union of Myanmar shall, in relation to the members of the Rohingya group in its territory, ensure that its military, as well as any irregular armed units which may be directed or supported by it and any organizations and persons which may be subject to its control, direction or influence, do not commit any acts described in point (1) above, or of conspiracy to commit genocide, of direct and public incitement to commit genocide, of attempt to commit genocide, or of complicity in genocide;

(3) Unanimously,

The Republic of the Union of Myanmar shall take effective measures to prevent the destruction and ensure the preservation of evidence related to allegations of acts within the scope of Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide;

(4) Unanimously,

The Republic of the Union of Myanmar shall submit a report to the Court on all measures taken to give effect to this Order within four months, as from the date of this Order, and thereafter every six months, until a final decision on the case is rendered by the Court.”

Click here for more information about the order.

(Adapted from an ICJ Press Release)

January 23, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Monday, January 20, 2020

List of Winners of the 2019 Global Legal Skills Awards

The 2019 Global Legal Skills Awards were presented last month in Phoenix during the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law. Here is the list of award winners from that conference. Click on a name to read more about that award (and to see a photo of the winner).

  1. Teresa Brostoff and Ann Sinsheimer (University of Pittsburgh School of Law)
  2. Alissa Hartig (Portland State University)
  3. Craig Hoffman (Georgetown)
  4. Rosa Kim (Suffolk)
  5. Charlotte Ku (Texas A&M University)
  6. Nadia Nedzel (Southern University Law Center)
  7. Karen M. Ross (New York University)(Book Award)
  8. Diana J. Simon (University of Arizona)
  9. DLA Piper (Law Firm Award)
  10. University of Houston Law Center (Law School Award)

And here is a link to the call for presenters for GLS-15 in Bari, Italy, being held May 20-22, 2020 at the University of Bari Department of Law.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dr. Charlotte Ku Has Won a Global Legal Skills Award

Charlotte Ku is Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Global Programs and Graduate Studies at Texas A&M University School of Law. She was recognized last month during the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference for her longstanding commitment to global legal education.

Charlotte Ku TAMUDr. Ku was previously a Professor of Law and Assistant Dean for Graduate and International Legal Studies at University of Illinois College of Law. She served as Acting Director of the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law, University of Cambridge, and was Executive Director and Executive Vice President of the American Society of International Law from 1994 to 2006. Especially through her international work at ASIL and the Lauterpacht Centre, Dr. Ku became known by professors, judges, lawyers, and legal scholars across the world.

Dr. Ku initiated and directs the Global and Comparative Law program at Texas A&M University. That program has sent faculty-led teams of more than 100 students overseas and has brought at least 20 international visiting scholars and LL.M. students to Texas. Dr. Ku is a political scientist with a rich background in global legal education. Her interest in world affairs began during her childhood in Hong Kong, then under British rule.

She earned a Ph.D. in International Relations at Tufts University in the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Her current research focuses on international law and global governance. 

Dr. Ku believes that a global perspective is vital to the practice of law. “Lawyers are relationship-builders and problem-solvers,” she has said. “A global outlook strengthens the ability to do both even if lives and careers never take an individual out of the United States. A global mindset, as part of a student’s professional identity and toolkit, is useful to help a person comfortably identify and tackle issues at multiple levels, in diverse settings, and through varied perspectives.”

We congratulate Dr. Charlotte Ku on receiving a 2019 Global Legal Skills Award and thank her again for her longstanding support of international legal skills education.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

University of Houston Law Center Wins the 2019 Global Legal Skills Award for Law Schools

The University of Houston Law Center received the 2019 Global Legal Skills Award for Law Schools, in recognition of the school’s strong commitment to fostering programs vital to teaching skills that U.S. students will need to succeed in an increasingly global legal marketplace. The award was presented in Phoenix during the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

The University of Houston Law Center offers almost three dozen independent courses related to international issues ranging from the mundane to the extraordinary. For example, course offerings include international staples such as International Tax and International Commercial Arbitration, but also specialized courses like Foreign Affairs, Crimmigration, and Transnational Petroleum Law (Lex Petrolea). The Law Center also supports a full-time librarian dedicated to foreign and international law research who, from time to time, teaches an upper-level research course in these fields.

In addition to its course offerings and research support, the law school also supports international skills training in several areas: 

  • The University of Houston Law Center and the University of Calgary Faculty of Law have partnered to form the International Energy Lawyers Program, a dual program that permits participating law students to earn both American and Canadian law degrees in four years. Students spend two years at each school and, upon graduation, can apply for admission to bars in both the United States and Canada.
  • The Center for U.S. and Mexican Law assists Law Center students to arrange summer externships in Mexico City with prestigious Mexican institutions such as Mexico’s Comisión Nacional de Hidrocarburos (National Hydrocarbons Commission), Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex), the Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), and the Comisión Reguladora de Energía (Energy Regulatory Commission).
  • The Law Center sponsors award-winning competition teams in the Competencia de Arbitraje Internacional de Inversión a Spanish-language arbitration competition, and other international competitions.
  • And the Law Center annually hosts several foreign-trained and foreign-licensed LL.M. candidates who study U.S. Law, Energy Law, Health Law, Intellectual Property and Information Law, International Law, and Tax Law.

The law school also sponsors centers that organize research symposia, professional seminars, and lectures on current comparative law issues. These centers also participate in cross-border educational collaborations:

  • The law school created the Center on Global Law and Policy for the Americas a new international center to focus on research, scholarship, and teaching related to international comparative law.
  • The school sponsors a Center for U.S. and Mexican Law focused on increasing the understanding of Mexican laws and legal institutions in the United States, and U.S. laws and legal institutions in Mexico.
  • And the Law Center promotes professional cooperation and comparative legal education through a partnership with the North American Consortium on Legal Education.

Through these many initiatives, the University of Houston Law Center demonstrates its commitment to global legal skills training for students and practitioners – international or domestic – who participate in the various research symposia and professional seminars the Law Center sponsors.

We congratulate the University of Houston Law Center on receiving the 2019 Global Legal Skills Award for Law Schools.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Rosa Kim Wins a Global Legal Skills Award

Rosa KimProfessor Rosa Kim of Suffolk University School of Law received a Global Legal Skills Award last month in recognition of her dedication to teaching global legal writing skills and for promoting global legal skills education. The award was presented last month in Phoenix during the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference held at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

Professor Kim chaired the Legal Writing Institute's Global Legal Writing Skills committee in 2016-18, and is currently co-chairing it in 2018-20.  In chairing this LWI committee, she redefined the charge to include teaching global and cultural skills to U.S. students, in addition to teaching international students, and led the effort to coordinate four globally-themed panels for the 2018 LWI conference, launch a Google Group for Global Skills, organize a webinar on teaching global skills to international and U.S. students, and update the LWI Teaching Bank on teaching global skills.  Rosa published the lead article in the international law edition, Summer 2018, of the Journal of Legal Education called "Globalizing the Law Curriculum for Twenty-First-Century Lawyering." Rosa has presented at several Global Legal Skills conferences, including Verona, Italy, San Jose, Costa Rica, and Chicago.  In her teaching, she developed a course in the Suffolk International Law concentration titled Advanced Legal Writing in an International Context, which she will be teaching in a hybrid format in Spring 2019.  She taught a summer course to Swedish and U.S. students called "Global Legal Skills" in Lund, Sweden in 2016, and in summer 2018 completed a Fulbright Specialist grant in Seoul, Korea at Korea University Law School, teaching an intensive legal writing and advocacy course to Korean law students.  

Before attending Boston College Law School, Professor Kim received an M.A. from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies with a concentration in International Economics and Latin American studies, and worked at the Republic of Korea s Mission to the United Nations. Upon graduation from law school, Professor Kim worked as a litigation associate at the Boston firm of Rubin Rudman, then as Assistant Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the Civil Trial Division, litigating cases in the areas of civil rights, torts and employment law. Prior to joining the Suffolk University Law School faculty, Professor Kim taught legal research and writing at Boston University School of Law and also taught in the Legal Studies Department at Brandeis University as a Guberman Fellow.

We congratulate Professor Kim on receiving a Global Legal Skills Award and thank her for her passionate advocacy of global legal skills.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Karen Ross Wins a Global Legal Skills Award for her Book, "Essential Legal English in Context"

Karen Ross NYUProfessor Karen M. Ross of the New York University School of Law received a Global Legal Skills Award last month in recognition of her book, Essential Legal English in Context: Understanding the Vocabulary of U.S. Law and Government (NYU Press 2019).

The award was presented during the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference held in Phoenix at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

Pictured here (from left to right) are Professors Kim Holst (Arizona State University), Julie Campagna (Hofstra Law School), Karen M. Ross (NYU), and Mark E. Wojcik (UIC John Marshall Law School). Professor Campagna, a past GLS Award Winner who presented the award to Professor Ross, is holding a copy of her new book.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 in Books | Permalink | Comments (0)

ISBA International and Immigration Law Section Council Meets With Consul General of Canada

20200120_150429Members of the International and Immigration Law Section Council of the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) met last week for a briefing with John Cruickshank, Consul General of Canada in Chicago. Among other matters, they discussed:

  • the tragic flight shot down in Iran with many Canadians on board,
  • the new trade agreement between Mexico, Canada, and the United States, and
  • consular notification and access under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR) and new Illinois legislation enacted to implement protections of the VCCR under Illinois law when foreign nationals are arrested or detained.

Pictured here (from left to right) are: Coleen Duke (Public Affairs Officer at the Consulate General of Canada); Susan Goldberg (UAW Legal Services and Secretary of the ISBA Section on International and Immigration Law); Tony Brown (Consular Program Manager at the Consulate General of Canada); Professor Cindy Buys (Interim Dean at the Southern Illinois University School of Law and former Section Chair); Canadian Consul General John Cruickshank; Professor Mark E. Wojcik (UIC John Marshall Law School and former Section Chair); Section Vice-Chair Meaghan E. Vander Schaaf (Senior Associate at Barnes Richardson Global Trade Law Firm); and Monica Robson (Consul for Foreign Policy and Diplomacy Services at the Consulate General of Canada).

The Illinois State Bar Association is a voluntary organization of about  28,000 members. Its primary focus is to assist Illinois lawyers in the practice of law and to promote improvements in the administration of justice. The ISBA engages in many important activities on behalf of the legal profession — among them proposing and shaping legislation, educating the public, and supporting the courts and the rule of law. The International and Immigration Law Section is one of the substantive law sections within the ISBA.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

DLA Piper Wins a Global Legal Skills Award

20191213_170307The law firm DLA Piper received a Global Legal Skills Award in recognition of its extraordinary support of education and skills training in the field of international commercial arbitration. The award was presented last month in Phoenix, Arizona, during the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

DLA Piper is a global law firm with lawyers in more than 40 countries.

In their Global Scholarships Program, DLA Piper each year pays full tuition and provides mentoring, internships, training and career preparation for up to 35 students based throughout Africa, South and West Asia, the South Pacific, and Latin America.

In their Head Start Program, the firm works with students for up to five years, providing financial assistance and a tailored course of mentoring, training, and internships designed to develop their skills, confidence, and networks.

The Phoenix office of DLA Piper was newly expanded and renovated last summer, with improved telepresence facilities that connect attorneys from different parts of the globe as though they were meeting in the same room.

Mark Nadeau, the founding and managing partner in the Phoenix office of DLA Piper, received the Global Legal Skills Award on behalf of the law firm. Pictured here are (from left to right) Professors Charles Calleros and Kim Holst of Arizona State University, Mr. Nadeau, and Professor Mark E. Wojcik of the UIC John Marshall Law School.

Mr. Nadeau has  taught International Arbitration at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, he has presented at conferences (including the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference0, he has coached law school international arbitration teams, and he has arranged for DLA Piper to support law student to travel to competitions in Hong Kong and Vienna.

Congratulations to Mr. Mark Nadeau and the DLA Piper Law Firm for its contributions to global legal skills and its support of education and skills training in the field of international arbitration.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Professor Diana Simon of Arizona Wins a Global Legal Skills Award

20200120_154937Professor Diana J. Simon of the James E. Rogers College of Law, The University of Arizona is recognized with an individual Global Legal Skills Award for her scholarship on cross-cultural legal education. The award was presented last month in Phoenix during the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

Professor Simon is an Associate Professor of Legal Writing and an Assistant Clinical Professor of Law at The University of Arizona, where she has taught legal writing, analysis, persuasion, and advocacy for more than 20 years.

She was recognized with a 2019 Global Legal Skills Award for her research is on Cross-Cultural Differences in Plagiarism. She recently published an article in the Duquesne Law Review. Her article addresses cross-cultural differences in plagiarism and the different attitudes that prevail in the academic and professional worlds.

We congratulate Professor Simon on her Global Legal Skills Award in recognition of her scholarship.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Nadia Nedzel Wins a Global Legal Skills Award

Nedzel GLS AwardProfessor Nadia E. Nedzel received a Global Legal Skills Award in celebration of her book, Legal Reasoning, Research, and Writing for International Graduate Students, and her contributions to international legal education. The award was presented last month in Phoenix during the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law. She's pictured here with the GLS-14 Conference Co-Chairs Mark E. Wojcik (UIC John Marshall Law School) and Kim Holst (ASU Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law).

Professor Nedzel is the Reilly Family Professor of Law at Southern University Law Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Her research interests include the Rule of Law, legal history, and comparative law, and she has a number of books and articles on this topic as well as others.  She teaches commercial law, including Contracts, Obligations, Sale and Lease, and International Public and Private law. 

She received her LL.M. with Honors from Northwestern University in Chicago, her J.D. Magna Cum Laude from Loyola University in New Orleans, and her B.S. in English, French, and Comparative Literature from Northwestern University. 

She speaks, writes, and reads French, Spanish, and Russian (to varying extents). She enjoys teaching and lecturing abroad in countries as diverse as France, Chile, Italy, Austria, Russia, Turkey, China, Guatemala, and Mexico.

We congratulate Professor Nedzel on receiving a 2019 Global Legal Skills Award for her book, Legal Reasoning, Research, and Writing for International Graduate Students, and for her contributions to international legal education.

(mew)

January 20, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sunday, January 19, 2020

CFP: SALT Teaching Conference at Loyola Chicago

SALT-logoThe Society of American Law Teachers (SALT) announced that the 2020 SALT Teaching Conference will be held on September 25–26, 2020 at Loyola University Chicago School of Law. The Conference, Social Justice in Action, will provide opportunities to engage in broad, substantive, and innovative discussions on the roles that the legal academy and the profession can and should take to prepare our students to address the social injustices of our time. 
 
Call for Proposals --  The CFP is available on Google Drive by clicking here.  

Please submit proposals via email to [email protected] by June 1, 2020. Given the many different areas of law that intersect with social justice and the myriad of settings in which lawyers practice, we encourage submissions that address a range of topics. 
 
Hat tip to the 2020 SALT Teaching Conference Committee

(mew)

January 19, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Craig Hoffman of Georgetown Wins 2019 Global Legal Skills Award

20200119_213131Dr. Craig Hoffman is a Professor of U.S. Legal Discourse and Director of the Graduate Writing Program at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. At the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference held last month at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, Dr. Hoffman was honored with a 2019 Global Legal Skills Award in recognition of his contributions to the development of the field of Legal English.

Craig HoffmanProfessor Hoffman is a linguist and a lawyer who has specialized in transactional writing and negotiations. He teaches courses that introduce students to how U.S. lawyers use language to communicate about the law. He consults with law schools around the world on issues of language and the law and with law firms on the interpretation of statutes and contracts.  

He received his B.A. from William & Mary; his Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut; and his J.D. from the University of Texas. Professor Hoffman has also received several fellowships in linguistics, cognitive science, business, and writing. His scholarship includes forensic linguistics, statutory and contract interpretation, discourse analysis, and genre analysis. 

He was co-chair of the Fourth Global Legal Skills Conference when it was held at Georgetown in June 2009.

His focus on law and language has directly inspired many programs around the country. At least one prominent law school based its hiring decisions on trying to find someone with Craig’s dual background and expertise in both law and linguistics.

Dr. Hoffman has accomplished much but he also has plans for the future. He plans now to develop at Georgetown a Masters’ Program in Teaching Legal English.

For his past work and future vision in developing the field of global legal skills education, we congratulate Dr. Craig Hoffman on receiving a 2019 Global Legal Skills Award.

(mew)

January 19, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Teresa Brostoff and Ann Sinsheimer Win 2019 Global Legal Skills Awards

Sinsheimer BrostoffProfessors Teresa Kissane Brostoff (pictured at left) and Ann Sinsheimer (pictured at right) are professors at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where they created the English for Lawyers Program, now titled U.S. Law and Language.

They co-authored a legal English text now in its third edition. Their book, United States Legal Language and Culture, is published by Oxford University Press.

At the 14th Global Legal Skills Conference held last month at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, Professors Brostoff and Sinsheimer were recognized with individual Global Legal Skills Awards for this publication – a book that helped develop the field of legal English education – and for their many contributions to the development of the field of Legal English.

In addition to their publication, Professors Brostoff and Sinsheimer have taught many classes of international lawyers not only at the University of Pittsburgh but also around the world including in China, Ethiopia, Iceland, Japan, Oman, Poland, Serbia, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, and other countries. They were also deeply involved as participants and peer reviewers in the Fulbright program helping to share legal English education around the world.

We congratulate Professors Brostoff and Sinsheimer on their award and thank them for their many contributions to international legal skills education.

(mew)

January 19, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (1)

Friday, January 17, 2020

Research Scholarships and Internships at UNIDROIT

UnidroitApplications due 31 January 2020

The International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) is an independent intergovernmental Organisation with its seat in the Villa Aldobrandini in Rome. Its purpose is to study needs and methods for modernising, harmonising and co-ordinating private and in particular commercial law as between States and groups of States and to formulate uniform law instruments, principles and rules to achieve those objectives.

UNIDROIT is currently accepting applications for the Institute’s 2020 Scholarship and Internship Programme.

A number of research scholarships (1000€ per month) will be granted to outstanding post-graduate (doctoral) law students, lawyers, academics and government officials to undertake two months of research in the UNIDROIT library (exceptionally, scholarships can also be granted for three months).

UNIDROIT will also offer internship opportunities in 2020 for exceptional later year undergraduate and postgraduate law students to work with the UNIDROIT Secretariat for a period of three months on high-priority topics on the UNIDROIT Work Programme. While majority of the internship positions are unpaid, a limited number of stipends (600€ per month) may be available for the top candidates, with preference given to applicants from developing countries.

Click here for more information.

(mew)

January 17, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Thursday, January 16, 2020

AALS Section on North American Cooperation to be Redesignated as the AALS Section on Law in the Americas

AALS LogoThe Association of American Law Schools Section.on North American Cooperation voted at its January business meeting to change the name and scope of the section. The new name -- the Section on Law in the Americas -- will expand the geographic focus of the section to North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean. The name change also signals a renewed focus on substantive legal issues in the Americas (as opposed to discussing topics such as educational exchanges).

The change is not yet official -- there are still several layers of approval needed from the AALS -- but it's a change to look out for if your research and teaching interests are in the Americas. The new section chair elected in January 2020 is Kim Nayyer of Cornell University School of Law.

(mew)

January 16, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

CFP: Global Legal Skills Conference in Bari, Italy in May 2020

Bari-MapThe Global Legal Skills Conference shares the latest teaching techniques and materials for international legal skills education and for teaching lawyers and law students who speak English as a second language. The GLS conference originated at The John Marshall Law School in Chicago (now UIC John Marshall Law School). Past conferences have been held in Australia, Costa Rica, Italy, Mexico, and the United States. Attendees come from law schools and law firms around the world. After our most recent conferences at Melbourne Law School and Arizona State University, the 15th edition of the conference will be held at the University of Bari Department of Law in southern Italy.

The organizers invite proposals for presentation at the GLS-15. Proposals are invited for individual presentations, group presentations, and for participation in international legal education roundtable discussions.The first call for proposals will close on January 31, 2020. Decisions will be made by February 29, 2020. Additional presentation proposals will be accepted until March 31, 2020 if space is still available. The link to submit proposals is

  • https://forms.law.asu.edu/view.php?id=659654 or
  • law.asu.edu/gls15

Questions about the conference can be directed to the Conference Co-Chair, Professor Mark E. Wojcik, at 312-987-2391 or by email at [email protected]. Several airlines serve the international airport at Bari or you might decide to fly earlier to Rome and take an express train to Bari.

(mew)

January 16, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

UNIDROIT International Conference in Rome on “Trade, Development, and Global Value Chain Contracting”

UnidroitUNIDROIT and the University of Trento are organizing an International Conference on the topic of “Trade, Development, and Global Value Chain Contracting” to be held on 16-17 April 2020 at UNIDROIT’s seat in via Panisperna 28, Rome.

The conference will discuss the governance and design of global value chains (GVC). Special attention will be paid to the role of contracts and financing devices in advancing development programmes and promoting innovation and sustainability. The conference intends to foster dialogue between academia and the institutional actors and organisations defining trade policies or setting global standards.

Click here for more information.

(mew)

January 16, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Last Call for Nominations for the Scribes Law-Review Award

Each year, Scribes—The American Society of Legal Writers—sponsors a legal writing competition to recognize an outstanding note or comment written by a law student who is associated with a student-edited law review or journal. This award has the distinction of being the only national award for student authors that places no limitation on subject matter.

Scribes LogoScribes invites law schools to submit one outstanding student note or comment that has been, or will be, published between June 1, 2019, and May 31, 2020. The competition will be judged by the Scribes Law-Review Committee. The winning journal and the author of the winning note or comment will each receive a plaque.

Scribes was founded in 1953 with the goal of recognizing legal writers and improving legal writing. Its members consist of judges, lawyers, law professors, and students who served on law reviews or journals. Scribes also publishes its own journal, The Scribes Journal of Legal Writing, and offers two national awards in addition to the Law-Review Award.

To get an entry form or for any questions, contact Scribes Executive Director Philip Johnson at [email protected]. Please submit your nomination by January 15, 2020. If the article has already been published you can also send the citation to that email address with a note that you're nominating it for the Scribes Law-Review Award.

(mew)

January 14, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)