Dear Colleagues,

Our summer 2019 newsletter features our students, faculty, deans, and alumni actively engaged in shaping international and comparative law. This spring, we hosted many international law practitioners, academics, and alums at GW Law to discuss developments, advances, and the path forward in international law. We also congratulate our graduates and look forward to their future contributions and achievements. I thank you all for your continued collaboration.

Rosa Celorio
Associate Dean of International and Comparative Legal Studies and Burnett Family Professorial Lecturer in International and Comparative Law and Policy
STUDENT ACTIVITIES
Nayomi Goonesekere Selected for ICJ Fellowship
Nayomi Goonesekere, LLM ’19, was selected in a very competitive process to participate in a fellowship at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague. She will serve as a law clerk for Judge Patrick L. Robinson of the ICJ during the 2019-20 year. Ms. Goonesekere, from Sri Lanka, pursued an LLM in International and Comparative Law as a Thomas Buergenthal Scholar. This is the second year in a row that a GW Law LLM student has been invited to participate in the ICJ Judicial Fellows Programme.  

Kenza Hamache Externs at the World Bank
Kenza Hamache, LLM ’19, participated in an externship this spring at the World Bank with the Integrity Vice Presidency Division. This independent unit investigates claims of fraud and corruption in World Bank group-financed projects. As part of her duties, Ms. Hamache worked with cases concerning French companies and on a project connected with anti-corruption guidelines. She said, “This externship confirmed my interest in compliance and anti-corruption and was an amazing experience as I had the chance to meet wonderful people from all over the world. I encourage everyone, and highly recommend, to do an externship in an international organization such as the World Bank. It is a wonderful experience.” Ms. Hamache also was awarded the Thelma Weaver Memorial Award at GW Law for her contributions to the intellectual and professional life of the law school, its students, and faculty.  
Sophia Arrighi Clerks at the Supreme Court of Guam
Sophia Arrighi, JD ’19, has accepted a clerkship with the Supreme Court of Guam. “As someone passionate about international and comparative law, I cannot imagine a better place to start my legal career,” she says. The judiciary in Guam is still quite young, and the Supreme Court regularly deals with issues of first impression. I’m incredibly excited to clerk for this Supreme Court while also having the opportunity to work on novel issues of law.” Ms. Arrighi also was actively engaged in international law-related activities at GW Law, including serving as the President of the International Law Society, working as a member of the George Washington International Law Review, and acting as a member of the award-winning Phillip C. Jessup Moot Court Competition Team.  
Student Research Supports UN International Law Commission Member Marcelo Vazquez
A group of LLM students supported the work of current United Nations International Law Commission member Marcelo Vazquez this spring. Ambassador Vazquez is currently preparing a report analyzing general principles of law as sources of international law for consideration by the UN International Law Commission. The students prepared regional studies focusing on Africa, Asia, Western and Eastern Europe, Latin America, as well as China, India, and Israel. The students who participated in this research initiative were Flavia Constance Akal Ibyara, Gon Khen Kafri Fibich, John Mathew, Kenza Hamache, Maximilian Wixler, Olga Mykhalchenko, Paola Romero, Ramneet Sierra, and Weixian Zhu.   ( Pictured left to right: Weixian Zhu, Maximilian Wixler, Paola Romero, Associate Dean Rosa Celorio, Kenza Hamache, Flavia Constance Akal Ibyara, UN International Law Commission member Marcelo Vazquez, Olena Mykhalchenko, Gon Khen Kafri Fibich, John Mathew, and Ramneet Sierra.)
AWARDS AND HONORS
Professor Karen Brown Receives Lifetime Achievement Award 
Karen B. Brown, Theodore Rinehart Professor of Business Law, was awarded the prestigious Leonard L. Silverstein Award for Distinguished Service in Tax. This award is named after the founder of the Tax Management Portfolios for his longstanding contributions to the field of tax. Professor Brown has dedicated her career, teaching, and scholarship to analyzing the many dimensions of international taxation, in particular the link between income taxation and economic inequality. Prior to her career as a law professor, she served as a trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice and as an associate for Steptoe & Johnson.

Professor Sean Murphy Elected to African Institute of International Law
Professor Sean Murphy has been elected as a member of the Curatorium of the African Institute of International Law (AIIL). Based in Tanzania, the AIIL is dedicated to education and research in the area of international law. It seeks to advance international peace, security, the rule of law, and cooperation between states.  

Professor Murphy has also been recently appointed an ad hoc judge in a dispute before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea between Switzerland and Nigeria. This request for provisional measures is related to the arrest and detention of the motor tanker “San Padre Pio,” its crew, and cargo. Professor Murphy will be participating in the upcoming hearing on the provisional measures in Hamburg, Germany between June 21-22, 2019.

Adjunct Professor Paulina Vera, JD '15, Receives Latinx Leader Award
Paulina Vera, JD ’15, was awarded the Alma Award at the GW Latinx Excellence Ceremony on April 10, 2019. The nominees for this award are charismatic individuals who make a difference and are leaders in the Latinx and our broader community. Ms. Vera works as a supervisory attorney of the Immigration Law Clinic at GW Law. 

FACULTY AND DEANS IN ACTION
Professor Karen Brown Works on a Human-Centered Business Model
Professor Karen B. Brown has been developing a human-centered business model (HCBM) with the World Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which is an innovative and exciting new project that provides tools and inputs to the private sector, governmental authorities, and consumers to achieve a core group of sustainability goals for new businesses. Many of these principles are derived from the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals 2030 and seek primary impact on employment and working conditions, local communities, and the environment. Particular emphasis has been given to adaptability of the model for low and middle-income countries. 

The HCBM offers a template for enterprises seeking to conduct business in a sustainable manner and furnishes an opportunity for governments to design a legal regime responsive to the core principles. The set of sustainable principles (concerning equity, environmental sustainability, and transparency) inform the model’s five separate pillars of corporate governance, financial instruments, fiscal regimes, procurement, and stakeholder relationships. 

For the fiscal pillar, Professor Brown and co-leader Professor Reuven Avi-Yonah, University of Michigan Law School, have produced a paper, “Tax Policy: A Tool to Support Sustainable Growth,” which appears on the OECD blog and will be published in summer 2019. The HCBM was introduced by Sandie Okoro, Legal Vice President of the World Bank, at the bank’s spring meetings in April 2019 by a panel of the Global Forum on Law, Justice, and Development. The model was launched by Marco Nicoli, Special Advisor to the Director of the OECD Development Centre (formerly of the World Bank’s Legal Vice Presidency). 
Professor Naomi Cahn is Co-editor of Oxford Handbook of Gender and Conflict
The Oxford Handbook of Gender and Conflict, published in 2018, was edited by Naomi Cahn, Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, Dina Francesca Haynes, and Nahla Valji. The publication explores the many dimensions and the complexity of gender issues in armed conflicts. The authors discuss how gender issues shape both war and peace and the experiences of women in this setting. 

Dean Rosa Celorio Trains Justice Officials in Argentina, Brazil, and U.S.
Associate Dean Rosa Celorio has trained a range of administration of justice officials in several cities this spring on international human rights law issues, as well as on the U.S. legal system. She first trained a group of judges, lawyers, prosecutors, and law enforcement officials from 26 different countries on March 13 on campus. The officials were visiting Washington, D.C., as part of the international leadership program of the State Department. She focused her lecture on the principles that define the U.S. legal system and the current legal landscape. On May 8, she also trained 600 judges in La Plata, Argentina on legal issues concerning the human rights of children, in a seminar sponsored by the administration of justice authorities of the Province of Buenos Aires. On June 21, she will train judges in Porto Alegre, Brazil on matters concerning the regional human rights protection system of the Americas, gender equality, and LGBTI issues. (Pictured: Associate Dean Celorio with justice officials visiting Washington, DC, on March 13, as part of the International Leadership Program of the State Department.)
Professor Steve Charnovitz Addresses ILO Global Conference
Professor Steve Charnovitz presented at the global conference "ILO100 Law for Social Justice" on April 15. The event was held at the International Labor Organization (ILO) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland on its centenary celebration. Professor Charnovitz focused his presentation on ILO sanctions, in the framework of existing international supervision and monitoring mechanisms. The conference featured leading scholars, legal practitioners, judges from the UN International Court of Justice, members of the International Law Commission, and others, to discuss contemporary issues of theory and practice affecting international institutions and the ILO.  (Pictured from left to right: Professor Steve Charnovitz; Laurence Boisson de Chazournes, Professor, University of Geneva, Faculty of Law; Anne Trebilcock, former ILO Legal Adviser;  Laurence Helfer, Professor, Duke University School of Law; and Erika de Wet, Professor, University of Pretoria)

Professor Donald Clarke’s Research Draws International Headlines
Professor Donald Clarke, David Weaver Research Professor of Law, is the co-author of the paper “Who Owns Huawei?” with Professor Christopher Balding of Fulbright University Vietnam. The paper explores the ownership and control of Chinese technology giant Huawei and whether it operates independently or under the influence of the Chinese government. The paper, available through the Social Science Research Network (SSRN), was recently cited by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Globe and Mail, The Telegraph, South China Morning Post, and Nikkei Asian Review, as well as in contributing pieces for Forbes and The Hill. The paper was downloaded 1,000 times within 24 hours of its being posted on SSRN.


On June 6, Professor Clarke also spoke on a panel regarding Xinjiang Detention Camps: Issues under Chinese Law at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University.
Professor Michael Matheson in Discussion at Stanford Law 
Professor Michael Matheson spent fall 2018 as a Visiting Professor at Stanford Law School, teaching a course on the United States’s use of armed force. He returned to Stanford Law School on February 23, 2019 to participate in a conference focused on nuclear weapons and the law, in which he chaired a panel on procedures for the authorization of a nuclear strike.
Professor Sean D. Murphy Continues Work at the ILC 
Professor Sean Murphy completed his fourth report on crimes against humanity for his work at the UN International Law Commission (ILC) in February. His report will be debated this summer in Geneva, Switzerland. In 2016, the UN General Assembly elected Professor Murphy to serve a second term as a member of the ILC from 2017 to 2021, where he acts as Special Rapporteur for Crimes Against Humanity. 

Professor Murphy gave the lecture “Prospects for a New Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity” at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law on January 14 and at Harvard Law School on April 4. He also gave the lecture “Dialogue Between Courts and Tribunals: Making International Law Effective” at King and Spalding in New York on April 1. 

As President of the American Society of International Law, Professor Murphy also presided over its annual meeting this past March in Washington, D.C. 
Professor Ralph Steinhardt Publishes Book on Jurisprudence and Persuasion
Professor Ralph Steinhardt is a co-author, with Benjamin Teich, of the book Jurisprudence and Persuasion: “You Can’t Argue Like That” A Case-Based Approach (West Academic Publishing, 2018). The book offers a groundbreaking and case-based approach to arguments regarding the nature of law and persuasion. It shows that every decided case exhibits an underlying theory or philosophy of law and that there is practical value in developing the skill to discern, articulate, and analyze it. 

FEATURED EVENTS
Lecture: Sandie Okoro, World Bank, on Diversity and Inclusion
Sandie Okoro giving a lecture on diversity and inclusion at GW Law
From left to right: Professor Karen Brown; Sandie Okoro; Dean Blake Morant; and Associate Dean Rosa Celorio
On January 30, GW Law hosted a lecture by Sandie Okoro, Senior Vice President and General Counsel of the World Bank Group. She focused her lecture on diversity and inclusion as values for success. Blake D. Morant, Dean and Robert Kramer Research Professor of Law, offered introductory remarks, and Karen B. Brown, Theodore Rinehart Professor of Business Law, offered closing remarks. (Pictured on right: Sandie Okoro. Pictured on left, )
Presentation: IACHR Report on Women Journalists 
From left to right, Marja Ruohomaki, SIDA; OAS Ambassador Jennifer Loten, Canada; OAS Ambassador Anne de la Blache, France; and Associate Dean Rosa Celorio
Edison Lanza, IACHR Freedom of Expression Rapporteur; Associate Dean Rosa Celorio; IACHR Commissioner Margarette Macaulay; Luz Patricia Mejia, Technical Secretary, MECECVI; and Javiera Sandoval Quiroz, Inter-American Commission on Women.
On March 8, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and its Special Rapporteurship on Freedom of Expression presented their latest report on gender-based discrimination and violence against women journalists. The event was organized in recognition of International Women’s Day, March 8. The event featured the participation of IACHR Commissioner and Rapporteur on Women Margarette Macaulay and current Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression Edison Lanza. It was co-sponsored by the International and Comparative Law Program, the International Law Society, and the Human Rights Law Society. 
Discussion: Jocelyn Aqua, JD '95, on Careers in International Privacy Law
On March 12, GW Law hosted an event featuring Jocelyn Aqua, JD '95, who currently serves as Principal on Cybersecurity and Privacy at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Ms. Aqua discussed her career path in the field of international privacy law and current priority issues. The event also featured moderation and commentary by Francesca Bignami, LeRoy Sorenson Merrifield Research Professor.
Lecture: Epsy Campbell, First Vice-President of Costa Rica
On March 25, GW Law hosted a lecture by Epsy Campbell, who currently serves as First Vice-President of Costa Rica. She is Costa Rica’s first woman of African descent to become vice president and the second female vice president of African descent in the Americas. This event was co-sponsored by the Institute on Race, Equality, and Human Rights. Dean Blake D. Morant offered introductory remarks. Commentary was shared by Carlos Quesada, Executive Director of the Institute on Race, Equality, and Human Rights, and Associate Dean Rosa Celorio.   
Book talk: Professor Valeria Vegh Weis on Marxism and Criminology
On March 19, GW Law hosted a discussion lead by Professor Valeria Vegh Weis of the University of Buenos Aires on her book Marxism and Criminology: A History of Criminal Selectivity. The talk was moderated by Robert Cottrol, Harold Paul Green Research Professor of Law.
Lecture: Dubravka Šimonović of the UN on Violence Against Women
On March 21, GW Law hosted a lecture by United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women Dubravka Šimonović. The UN Special Rapporteur focused her remarks on a reflection of the 25-year anniversary of the mandate she holds and on current advances, priorities, and challenges. The event featured commentary from Mary Ellsberg, Executive Director of GW’s Global Women’s Institute, and Associate Dean Rosa Celorio. This event was co-sponsored by the GW’s Global Women’s Institute, the Human Rights Law Society, and the International Law Society. (Pictured from left to right: Associate Dean Rosa Celorio; UN Special Rapporteur Dubravka Šimonović; and Mary Ellsberg, Executive Director of Global Women’s Institute)
Panel: Experts Discuss Cyber Issues in International Law
On April 2, GW Law hosted a panel of experts to discuss “Cyber-operations Below the Armed Conflict Threshold: International Law Issues.” Laura Dickinson, Oswald Symister Colclough Research Professor of Law, moderated this event, which featured presentations from Colonel Gary Corn, JD ' 93, Staff Judge Advocate, U.S. Cyber Command; Nicole Hogg, Legal Adviser and Head of Department, International Committee of the Red Cross; and Paul Rosenzweig, Professorial Lecturer in Law. This event was co-sponsored by the National Security Program and the National Security Law Students Association.  (Pictured from left to right: Colonel Gary Corn; Professor Laura Dickinson; and Nicole Hogg, ICRC. On screen, Paul Rosenzweig, Adjunct Law Professor, GW Law)
Discussion: “Live from L” with the State Department
On April 4, GW Law hosted “Live from L” with the Office of Legal Adviser of the U.S. Department of State. The discussion this year was focused on international economic law. Former Legal Adviser Jennifer G. Newstead led the discussion, joined by assistant legal advisers Jesse Tampio, David B. Sullivan, and Emily J. Kimball from the Office of Economic and Business Affairs; and John I. Blanck from the Office of International Claims and Investment Disputes. Associate Dean Rosa Celorio moderated the panel. The event was co-sponsored by the American Society of International Law and the ABA Section on International Law. GW Law is grateful for the continuing support of Ronald J. Bettauer in the organization of this yearly event   (Pictured from left to right; Associate Dean Rosa Celorio; Jesse Tampio; David B. Sullivan; former legal adviser Jennifer G. Newstead; John I. Blanck; and Emily J. Kimball)
Panel: Discussion of Mass Detentions in Xinjiang, China
On April 15, GW Law hosted the panel “Mass Detentions in Xinjiang, China: Issues of Law and Human Rights.” The event was organized by Professor Donald Clarke and moderated by Professor Ralph Steinhardt. Remarks were given by Sophie Richardson, China Director, Human Rights Watch; Sean Roberts, Associate Professor of the Practice of International Affairs and Director, International Development Studies Program, GW; and Nury Turkel, Attorney and Chair of the Board, Uyghur Human Rights Project.  (Pictured from left to right: Nury Turkel; Sophie Richardson; Sean Roberts, Professor Don Clarke, and Professor Ralph Steinhardt)