International Law

How the author of ‘The Forgotten Flight’ fought for justice for terror victims’ families (podcast)

If you mention a terrorist attack in which a Libyan suitcase bomb brought down an airliner, most people will be quick to remember Pan Am Flight 103, which crashed on Dec. 21, 1988 in Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people. But there is another, similar attack that happened nine months later, on Sept. 19, 1989.

Sep 6, 2017 8:43 AM CDT

Web Extra: Philippe Sands

Philippe Sands, the author of East West Street: On the Origins of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity, was interviewed by James Podgers for the ABA Journal. Here is an edited transcript of that interview.

Sep 1, 2017 12:20 AM CDT

Holocaust, international law intersect in Lviv, Ukraine

In East West Street, London barrister Philippe Sands weaves intertwining true stories against the backdrop of the Holocaust and the Nuremberg trials.

Sep 1, 2017 12:15 AM CDT

Realign laws on evidence-gathering on the internet, Google GC says

For as long as we’ve had legal systems, prosecutors and police have needed to gather evidence. And for each new advance in communications, law enforcement has adapted.

Aug 24, 2017 8:00 AM CDT

ABA Center for Human Rights forwards law prof’s assessment of illegality of arms deal to Senate

Further arms sales to Saudi Arabia would violate federal law, unless the country takes steps to comply with international humanitarian law, according to a law professor whose opinion was provided to the U.S. Senate by the ABA Center for Human Rights. The center supplied the opinion by Vanderbilt University law…

May 22, 2017 3:42 PM CDT

Sweden drops sexual assault probe against WikiLeaks founder, but his legal troubles aren’t over

Prosecutors in Sweden on Friday dropped a sexual assault investigation of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, but he still faces a warrant for his arrest in London and the possibility of an indictment in the United States. Sweden’s director of public prosecutions, Marianne Ny, said charges were dropped because authorities need…

May 19, 2017 9:48 AM CDT

Supreme Court to consider whether corporations may be liable for overseas human rights violations

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether Arab Bank can be held liable for allegedly acting as a “paymaster” for terrorists.

Apr 3, 2017 1:51 PM CDT

The Outer Space Treaty turns 50. Can it survive a new space race?

The treaty is a product of the Cold War and primarily addresses concerns of that era, including nuclear war. So for 50 years, the treaty has prevented belligerent nations from putting weapons of mass destruction into space. But space is becoming big business, and commercial interests are putting new pressures on the law of outer space.

Apr 1, 2017 5:00 AM CDT

5 United Nations treaties in outer space

There are five international treaties that deal with issues such as arms control, freedom of exploration, liability for damage caused by space objects, exploitation of natural resources in outer space, and more.

Apr 1, 2017 4:45 AM CDT

Lawyer for Roman Polanski asks for time served in 40-year-old rape case

Forty years after movie director Roman Polanski fled the United States to avoid penalties for sexual assault, his attorney has asked a judge to sentence him to time served, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday. Attorney Harland Braun told a Los Angeles trial court Monday that Polanski should be allowed…

Mar 21, 2017 4:52 PM CDT

Russian spies and hired hackers are indicted in Yahoo security breach

Updated: Two members of Russia’s intelligence agency and two Russian-hired hackers have been indicted in the 2014 hacking of 500 million Yahoo accounts. The indictments were announced Wednesday, the New York Times reports. The indictments represent the largest hacking case ever brought by the United States, according to an advance…

Mar 15, 2017 9:50 AM CDT

ABA condemns terrorist attacks aimed at judicial institutions in Afghanistan and Pakistan

The American Bar Association condemned recent terrorist attacks aimed at court systems in Afghanistan and Pakistan in a statement Wednesday written by ABA President Linda A. Klein. Two attacks in February—one on the Supreme Court of Afghanistan in Kabul and one on the District Court in Charsadda, Pakistan—were singled out…

Mar 1, 2017 9:52 AM CST

Iran terror victims receive first payments; will this affect foreign immunity?

It’s not every day that a wire transfer for $40 million crosses a lawyer’s desk—particularly when the cash is coming from the Central Bank of Iran. But for Jamie Bernard, a partner with Stroock & Stroock & Lavan, the multimillion-dollar payout was a satisfying culmination of years of litigation and…

Mar 1, 2017 4:05 AM CST

ABA closes office in China while it measures the impact of new restrictions on NGO activities

In the wake of a new law threatening criminal prosecution of foreigners engaging in human and legal rights work in China, the ABA Rule of Law Initiative closed its Beijing office in December.

Mar 1, 2017 1:10 AM CST

ABA House urges President Trump to withdraw travel ban

The ABA House of Delegates today passed a resolution urging that the executive branch ensure that any executive orders concerning border security, immigration enforcement and terrorism be within the bounds of laws, treaties and other agreements, and to facilitate a just system for adjudicating various requests for entry into the…

Feb 6, 2017 7:00 PM CST