The United Nations Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Properties includes an exception to state immunity suits that include a territorial tort exception that requires a tort to be in whole or in part and the author to be present in the forum state. This is outdated. Not every State is bound by this wording, but many are inspired by it in drafting their immunity laws. What does this mean in the days of improved technology and increased digital attacks? How can these parameters be changed for the modern world?
Read MoreThe recent strikes in Iran by the United States and Israel have sparked a wider regional war. Volume XLIX staff editor Scott Warner-Hudson argues that the initial strikes violated international law. This post explores what international law is, and highlights the potential risks in violating it.
Read MoreOn February 28, 2026, the United States launched a joint attack on Iran in collaboration with Israel. The US hostilities, called "Operation Epic Fury," has sparked fierce debate about President Trump's authority to send troops into Iran without congressional authorization. Volume XLIX staff editor Megan Van Stensel argues that this armed hostility is not a new phenomena, and that it is finally time for the Supreme Court to settle the prolonged interbranch dispute about the 1973 War Powers Resolution.
Read MoreTelemedicine has the potential to provide significant benefits to patients across the globe. However, substantial legal and regulatory barriers stand in the way of international adoption. Volume XLIX staff editor Regina Openshaw examines the principal challenges faced by cross-border telemedicine and argues that absent international coordination, telemedicine's benefits will remain largely unrealized.
Read MoreIn the past year, U.S. immigration courts have increasingly relied on pretermission to dismiss asylum applications during the initial procedural stages of proceedings, aiming to resolve the backlog of over three million immigration cases. Volume XLIX staff editor Katie Keyser argues that this policy undermines the non-refoulement principle established by the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.
Read MoreThe United States is the only developed country in the world that does not mandate paid maternity leave for new parents. Rather, due to a patchwork of federal and state level regulations, new parents are at the mercy of their employer for coverage. The result is that the most vulnerable Americans have no paid leave coverage and must return to work shortly after the birth of their child. Volume XLIX staff editor Joyce Herward argues that the U.S. needs to enact legislation for both public and private workers using the international standard of 14 weeks minimum paid maternity.
Read MoreAs seen by Israel's use of Artificial Intelligence-powered targeting systems during the Israel-Hamas war, AI weapons have revolutionized how international conflicts are fought. After South Africa accused Israel of committing genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza, many have questioned how prevailing purpose-based conceptions of dolus specialis could be applicable to the use of AI weaponry in armed conflict. In light of the pressing issues arising from these developments, Volume XLIX staff editor Cameron Mukerjee proposes a shift towards the knowledge-based approach to dolus specialis in genocide jurisprudence.
Read MoreIn January 2026, the United States conducted a military operation in Venezuela that resulted in the capture of President Nicolás Maduro, framing the action as a domestic law-enforcement arrest rather than a use of force. Volume XLIX staff editor Victoria Pedreiro examines whether that characterization is consistent with international law and argues that rebranding international military intervention as domestic law enforcement risks undermining the United Nations Charter's prohibition on the use of force.
Read MoreFollowing a U.S. military operation in January 2026 that involved airstrikes across Venezuela and the capture of President Nicolás Maduro, questions arose regarding both the legality of the intervention and Maduro’s potential immunity in U.S. courts. Drawing parallels to the 1989 U.S. intervention in Panama against Manuel Noriega, and subsequent legal proceedings against him, this post examines whether Nicolas Maduro could successfully invoke diplomatic immunity.
Read MoreSovereign wealth funds (SWFs) now control over $13 trillion in assets and have become powerful financial actors on the global stage. As these state-owned investment vehicles shift from passive holdings to direct investments, particularly in sensitive sectors, concerns surrounding politically-motivated investments have heightened. Volume XLIX staff editor Sophia Lima argues that the current patchwork of domestic screening procedures and voluntary international principles are inadequate tools for SWF regulation. This post examines why stronger transparency requirements and a binding international framework are needed to regulate SWFs in the modern global economy.
Read MoreGreenland, an Arctic territory with a predominantly Inuit population, has become the subject of renewed international debate over sovereignty and self-determination. Amid claims that Greenland could be acquired by an external power, Volume XLIX staff editor Ariel Hanover argues that international law forecloses treating Greenland as a negotiable asset. This post examines how the right of indigenous self-determination under the UN Charter, human rights treaties, and evolving international norms constrains external claims to Greenland’s sovereignty, and why violating those protections would carry serious consequences for the rules-based international order.
Read MoreRegulatory approaches to smart contracts and their potential for abuse differ across the globe, creating a lack of uniform liability standards that enables bad actors to evade responsibility. This post explores how smart contracts’ autonomous and borderless nature makes them vulnerable to criminal misuse, while fragmented global regulations leave major gaps in accountability. Charlotte Chandler proposes a two-tiered framework that preserves code as a protected form of expression while holding programmers accountable when their deployed code functionally facilitates illicit activity.
Read MoreAs global technology and economic trends increasingly depend on the exploitation of natural resources in Indigenous territory, the United States must ensure the Indigenous right of consultation is meaningfully codified in US domestic law. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) is the most comprehensive enumeration of this right, and Volume XLIX staff editor Rachel Amran argues that as an endorsing nation, the United States should pass its own statutory consultation mandate in line with UNDRIP standards. This post explores the current US legal regime on consultation and international Indigenous rights standards.
Read MoreOnce largely the stuff of science fiction, posthumous parenthood is now a scientific reality. Volume XLIX staff editor Shayna Altschuller explores one of the legal challenges that arise when a child is conceived after a parent’s death. With growing international use of posthumous assisted reproduction, U.S. and foreign inheritance laws sometimes leave these children in legal limbo. This post examines how jurisdictions like Israel, Ukraine, and the U.S. grapple with statutory recognition of posthumously conceived children -- and why legislative clarity is urgently needed.
Read MoreIn January 2026, the United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and asserted control over Venezuela’s oil industry. Framed by U.S. officials as both a security and economic measure, the operation raises a fundamental question of international law: does the seizure and sale of another state’s natural resources constitute lawful asset enforcement, or an unlawful violation of state sovereignty?
Read MoreOn January 7, 2026, President Trump announced the United States’ withdrawal from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), a landmark climate treaty ratified by the Senate in 1992. The decision has reignited debate over whether a President may unilaterally withdraw from a Senate-approved treaty and what such action means for future U.S. participation in the Convention. In this post, Volume XLIX staff editor Alex Levine examines the legal uncertainty surrounding the withdrawal and the prospects for reentry.
Read MoreThe Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act contains a key carveout, the predicate exception, which has become a critical mechanism for holding gun manufacturers liable. Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos had the potential to resolve many long-standing questions surrounding the scope and application of that exception. However, Volume XLIX staff editor Haley Rubin argues that the Court’s decision instead opens the door to greater uncertainty, leaving lower courts, and transnational plaintiffs, without clear guidance on when the predicate exception may be invoked.
Read MoreIn July 2025, the International Court of Justice issued a landmark advisory opinion recognizing binding state obligations to address climate change. While the opinion marks a significant expansion of international climate law, Volume XLIX staff editor Tori Stanford argues that persistent attribution challenges limit its ability to deliver meaningful accountability. This post examines the tension between the ICJ's legal ambition and the practical difficulties of attributing climate harm to individual states.
Read MoreThis article argues that state-sponsored use of AI-generated deepfakes to manipulate foreign elections constitutes an emerging form of unlawful intervention under customary international law, while addressing the inadequacy of existing regulatory responses. By comparing the United States’ enforcement-driven, piecemeal approach with the European Union’s preventive, risk-based framework under the AI Act and Digital Services Act, the article demonstrates how fragmented domestic regimes leave critical gaps that foreign actors can exploit. It contends that the International Court of Justice’s non-intervention doctrine provides a viable legal foundation for addressing AI-enabled election interference, but must be supplemented by coordinated international standards.
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