Bio
Jakob Kellenberger
The 2012 Grotius Lecturer and recipient of ASIL's Honorary Member Award, Jakob Kellenberger, has served as President of the International Committee of the Red Cross since 2000. His Grotius Lecture will reflect on the meeting theme—"Confronting Complexity"—in the context of contemporary international humanitarian law.
Leila Sadat
Leila Nadya Sadat is the Henry H. Oberschelp Professor of Law at the Washington University School of Law and the Director of the Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute. She is an internationally-recognized authority in international criminal law and human rights and a prolific scholar, publishing in leading journals in the United States and abroad.
Trained in both the French and American legal systems, Sadat brings a cosmopolitan perspective to her work. She is particularly well-known for her expertise on the International Criminal Court, and was a delegate to the 1998 diplomatic conference in Rome at which the Court was established. She has published a series of articles on the Court and an award-winning monograph, "The International Criminal Court and the Transformation of International Law" which was supported by the United States Institute of Peace.
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Encyclopædia Britannica Article
- international law
Body of legal rules, norms, and standards that apply between sovereign states and other entities that are legally recognized as international actors. The term was coined by the English philosopher Jeremy Bentham. Important elements of international law include sovereignty, recognition (which allows a country to honour the claims of another), consent (which allows for modifications in international agreements to fit the customs of a country), freedom of the high seas, self-defense (which ensures that measures may be taken against illegal acts committed against a sovereign country), freedom of commerce, and protection of nationals abroad. International courts, such as the International Court of Justice, resolve disputes on these and other matters, including war crimes. See also asylum; immunity.
- international law on britannica.com
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