Category: Getting To Know the United Nations
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Inside the International Law Commission: When, Where, and How It Meets
The post discusses the significance of the International Law Commission (ILC) amidst geopolitical challenges, emphasizing its role in interpreting international law. It highlights logistical aspects, such as session lengths and locations, particularly a recent five-week session in 2025 due to financial issues. These factors impact the Commission’s effectiveness and perceived…
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Inside the International Law Commission: Who Sits at the Table and How They Get There
The post emphasizes the significance of the United Nations International Law Commission (ILC) amid geopolitical fragmentation. It discusses the ILC’s membership structure, election processes, and the need for greater diversity, especially regarding gender. The post is part of a series aimed at enhancing understanding of the ILC’s role in international…
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Inside the International Law Commission: Product Form
The post emphasizes the importance of the United Nations International Law Commission (ILC) in interpreting international law amid geopolitical challenges. It explores the evolving nature of the ILC’s final products, which include draft articles, principles, guidelines, conclusions, and reports, reflecting both existing laws and the development of new legal norms.
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Inside the International Law Commission: Process of Consideration
The post discusses the crucial role of the United Nations International Law Commission (ILC) in interpreting international law amid geopolitical challenges. It outlines the ILC’s structured, multi-stage process for developing legal norms, emphasizing the importance of state input and consensus-building in its deliberations, illustrating its unique position within the international…
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Inside the International Law Commission: Institutional Structure
In today’s fragmented geopolitical climate, the significance of international law remains crucial, particularly through institutions like the United Nations International Law Commission (ILC). This post explores the ILC’s institutional structure, highlighting how this structure reveals a carefully calibrated institutional ecosystem designed to manage disagreement, preserve expertise, and produce legal texts…
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Inside the International Law Commission: History and Origin
The relevance of international law is heightened during geopolitical fragmentation. The United Nations International Law Commission (ILC), established post-WWII, plays a crucial role in developing and codifying international law. This series, tied to an academic course, aims to enhance understanding of the ILC’s significance and workings for broader audiences.
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COVID-19 and the Evolving Character of “Peace and Security” within the UN Charter
[This blog series was originally posted on the now-defunct website of American University, Washington College of Law’s Law and International Development Society in April 2021.] Over the past two decades, the world has seen a variety of epidemics (e.g., HIV/AIDs, SARS, MARS, and Ebola) as well as pandemics (e.g., COVID-19). Epidemics and…
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What is a “Uniting for Peace” Resolution and why does it matter?
Last week, the United Nations General Assembly held a “special emergency session” under its “Uniting for Peace resolution” power. Unfortunately, while this event was widely covered in international news, the news didn’t always get the details right. So, as the UN nerd that I am, I decided to set the…
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Made-For-Twitter, A United Nations SDG Rant
At work, I go through a disturbing amount of articles every day picking out the most relevant ones to tweet from our company accounts. And because my personal twitter is absolutely abysmal follower and activity-wise, I’ve been using the less company-relevant (but still thought provoking) articles for myself. Recently one…
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What is the Function of International Law?
What is the function of International Law? International law is the framework through which the world attempts to achieve far reaching goals – such as human equality – worldwide and increase the quality of life for the human population. While international decisions which are disregarded (such as that by the…
Ginger Without Borders 