The fall of 2020 has been a deeply challenging and transformational moment for the United States and the international community. These are times of great complexity and crisis with the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects; a dire present and a history of structural racial discrimination; the full transition to a highly digitalized world; and the dawn of a new presidential administration. All these issues are greatly shaping and impacting the enforcement of international law, human rights, and the rule of law. In this setting, our students continue displaying creativity, innovation, determination, and resilience. Our International and Comparative Law program continues to find ways to contribute to the work of international organizations and to provide spaces to discuss contemporary issues and potential solutions. I hope we all continue finding ways to collaborate. I close by sending you my best wishes for health, wellness, and peace during the holidays and the upcoming year. 

Rosa Celorio
Associate Dean of International and Comparative Legal Studies and Burnett Family Professorial Lecturer in International and Comparative Law and Policy
GW LAW ADDRESSES COVID-19
Students Support World Bank’s Global Forum on Law, Justice, and Development 
A group of GW Law students supported the Global Forum on Law, Justice, and Development (GFLJD) of the World Bank this fall with a contribution to the publication Review of Legal Experiences and Global Best Practices in the Era of COVID-19. The GFLJD undertook this initiative with the goal of contributing to global efforts to address the COVID-19 pandemic in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, rule of law, and human rights law principles. The publication places a particular emphasis on rule of law-based approaches grounded on Sustainable Development Goal 16 as key to advance development, inclusion, equality, and access to justice in all societies. The publication discusses in particular a series of legal standards and best practices that states, international organizations, civil society organizations, and the private sector have developed at the global level to address the current COVID-19 global pandemic. The students involved in preparing the contribution were Laura Cahier, Georgia Eleni Exarchou, Mariam Gnakra, Jordan Jones, Heng Li, Luis Enrique Mendoza, Sabrina Rodriguez, and Konrad Turnbull. The research team was supervised by Associate Dean Rosa Celorio.
(Pictured from left to right: Top Row: Associate Dean Rosa Celorio, Sabrina Rodriguez, Laura Cahier; Middle Row: Jordan Jones, Mariam Gnakra, Luis Mendoza Choque; Bottom Row: Heng Li, Konrad Turnbull, Georgia Eleni Exarchou)
Dean Matthew Discusses Rule of Law Challenges and Inequality in the Era of COVID-19
The publication Legal Experiences and Global Best Practices in the Era of COVID-19, launched on November 19, included the remarks and participation of Dayna Bowen Matthew, Dean and Harold H. Greene Professor of Law. Dean Matthew offered her remarks during a discussion at the Law, Justice, and Development Week, an annual event organized by the Legal Vice Presidency of the World Bank in collaboration with the Global Forum on Law, Justice and Development, an international knowledge-exchange platform of over 170 partners engaged in legal aspects of development. The panel included Sandie Okoro, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, World Bank; H.E. Edwin Tong SC, Minister for Culture, Community, and Youth and Second Minister for Law, Singapore; Alberto Rodriguez, Director, Strategy and Operations, Human Development Practice Group, World Bank; and Vikram Raghavan, Lead Counsel, Legal Vice Presidency, World Bank. The panelists discussed the need for COVID-19 responses grounded in the rule of law, human rights, and the sustainable development goals; the key nature of ending inequality to adequately respond to the pandemic; and the importance of the work of multilateral organizations to document experiences and collect data in times of emergency. GW Law students made a significant contribution to the research and drafting of this publication.
AWARDS
Professor Alberto Benitez Among “Best Immigration Law Lawyers in D.C.”
Professor Alberto Benitez was selected as one of the 2021 Best Lawyers in Washington, D.C., in the field of immigration law. This year during the pandemic, GW’s Immigration Law Clinic has continued to actively represent clients from around the world on immigration law matters, including removal proceedings and petitions for affirmative asylum before federal administrative tribunals.
FACULTY AND DEAN ACTIVITIES
Paul Schiff Berman
Walter S. Cox Professor of Law

Professor Berman edited The Oxford Handbook of Global Legal Pluralism, newly released by Oxford University Press. In the book, Professor Berman helps define the field of global legal pluralism and analyzes how the law operates in a world that includes multiple legal systems and authorities. The book includes contributions from more than 40 authors from different countries and disciplines who cover key areas in legal pluralism research. Professor Berman is one of the leading global theorists on the effects of globalization in the interactions among legal systems. He is the author of nearly 60 scholarly works, including Global Legal Pluralism: A Jurisprudence of Law Beyond Borders, published by Cambridge University Press (2012). For more information, click here.
Rosa Celorio
Associate Dean of International and Comparative Legal Studies and Burnett Family Professorial Lecturer in International and Comparative Law and Policy
Associate Dean Celorio discussed her life and career with Mark Agrast, Executive Director of the American Society of International Law, in an event sponsored by the Washington Foreign Law Society on September 1. She was also a speaker on the panel COVID-19 Pandemic and Human Rights, organized by the International Social Impact Conference on June 21, and she offered the virtual lecture “COVID-19 Pandemic and Human Rights” to the Administration of Justice System in Buenos Aires, Argentina on June 18. Dean Celorio also was invited as an expert to the United Nations Regional Consultation on Representation of Women in United Nations Bodies, organized by the Center for Justice and International Law at American University Washington College of Law and the GQUAL Campaign on July 15. She also offered a presentation on the regional human-rights protection systems and the problem of discrimination virtually to the University of Colorado Law School, Boulder on September 24.

On September 30, Dean Celorio was invited to offer the lecture “International Human Rights Law: Leadership, Challenges, and the Path Forward” at the Leadership, Ethics, and Practice Initiative (LEAP) at GW’s Elliott School of International Affairs. Finally, Dean Celorio participated as a speaker on the panel “Gender Equality and Inter-American System of Human Rights,” organized by the National University of Mexico, Boston College Law School, and Boston University School of Law on October 29. Dean Celorio also published the following articles: “The Need for Human Rights in Times of Crisis,” Oxford Human Rights Hub (June 12, 2020); “A Glimpse of Hope from the U.S. Supreme Court: Bostock v. Clayton County,” RightsViews (June 30, 2020); and “Having Strong Gender-Based Violence Laws Isn’t Enough,” Americas Quarterly, Special Report on Closing the Gender Gap (October 21, 2020).
Sean D. Murphy
Manatt/Ahn Professor of International Law
In May 2020, Professor Murphy spoke at an online event for the World Bank Environmental and International Law Practice Group on the topic “The International Law Commission: Reflections on its Current Program of Work.” In June, he moderated “A Conversation with ASIL Honorees Claudio Grossman and Hina Jilani” for the American Society of International Law (ASIL) 2020 Annual Meeting. During the year, Professor Murphy chaired the ASIL Nominating Committee, which selected the slate of ASIL leaders for election at the 2021 Annual Meeting. In October, Professor Murphy spoke at a colloquium organized by the Portuguese Society of International Law on “International Responsibility and the Pandemic,” with his presentation on “Responsibility of International Organizations for a Pandemic: Three Fundamental Questions.”

Professor Murphy published the following during 2020: Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Work of the International Law Commission, 114 American Journal of International Law 726 (2020); “Obligations of States in Disputed Areas of the Continental Shelf,” in New Knowledge and Changing Circumstances in the Law of the Sea 183 (Brill, Tomas Heider ed., 2020); and Codifying the Obligations of States Relating to the Prevention of Atrocities,” 52 Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law 27 (2020). Finally, he sat as an arbitrator for hearings in two investor-state cases in August and October respectively: ICL Europe Coöperatief v. Ethiopia, PCA Case No.2017-26 and Agility Public Warehousing Company v. Iraq, ICSID Case No. ARB/17/7.
FEATURED EVENTS
In Conversation: Mark Agrast and Associate Dean Celorio 
On August 20, 2020, Associate Dean Rosa Celorio interviewed Mark Agrast, Executive Director of the American Society of International Law (ASIL), about his experiences and career path. Shortly after, Mr. Agrast interviewed Associate Dean Celorio on September 1, about her life and career. The conversation series was sponsored by the Washington Foreign Law Society, ASIL, and the GW Law International and Comparative Law Program. Both conversations were organized via Zoom and can be viewed here: Event 1 and Event 2.
International Experts Discuss Challenges faced by Indigenous Peoples During Pandemic 
On Wednesday, September 23, the International and Comparative Law Program hosted a Zoom panel discussion focused on the challenges faced by indigenous peoples in the respect and protection of their human rights during the COVID-19 pandemic. The event was organized by Laura Cahier, LLM Class of 2021, and co-sponsored by the Institut des Amériques and GW Law’s International Law Society. The panel was composed of Monica Coc Magnusson, Q’eqchi Maya Lawyer and Legal Advisor for the Maya Peoples in Belize; Alexandra Xanthaki, Professor, Brunel Law School, United Kingdom; and Marjolaine Olwell, Professor of Practice, University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law. The panel was moderated by Associate Dean Rosa Celorio and included commentary from Ms. Cahier. The panelists discussed how the COVID-19 crisis has exacerbated the marginalization of indigenous communities and aggravated the human rights issues they face throughout the world. In light of this unprecedented pandemic, the speakers also discussed: the existing international legal standards and the need to enhance the respect of the rights of indigenous peoples to their territories, consultation and consent, effective participation, and self-determination in the process of finding responses to COVID-19. 
COVID-19 and its Impact on Investment Arbitration 
On October 1, the International and Comparative Law Program hosted a panel discussing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the practice of international investment arbitration. The panel was moderated by Professor Chiara Giorgetti, University of Richmond School of Law, with remarks from Martina Polasek, LLM ’12, Deputy Secretary-General, International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes; the Honorable Judge Charles N. Brower; and Nudrat Piracha, SJD ’20, Partner, Septentrio Global Consulting. The panelists discussed both positive and negative impacts of the pandemic on investment arbitration, including the nature of remote hearings and sessions, and the implications of these changes. The event, which was held via Zoom, was sponsored by the International and Comparative Law Program, the American Society of International Law, the Washington Foreign Law Society, and GW Law’s International Law Society and the International Arbitration Student Association.
COVID-19 and Persons Deprived of Liberty 
On October 15, the International and Comparative Law Program hosted a discussion on the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on persons deprived of liberty. Event participants included James Cavallaro, Executive Director, University Network for Human Rights and former President and Rapporteur on Persons Deprived of Liberty, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights; Sofi Galvan, Senior Attorney, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights; Juan Mendez, Professor of Human Rights Law, American University Washington College of Law and former U.N. Rapporteur on Torture; and Eric Rosenthal, Executive Director, Disability Rights International. The panel, which was held via Zoom, was moderated by Associate Dean Rosa Celorio and was co-sponsored by ASIL, the Washington Foreign Law Society, and both the Human Rights Law and International Law Society at GW Law. The panelists discussed how the pandemic accentuates and worsens many of the barriers and challenges to see their rights respected, protected, and fulfilled that persons deprived of liberty were already facing. The panelists discussed challenges, prospects, alternative measures to prisons, the specific situation of persons with disabilities, and the relevance of international law standards to addressing all these problems.
Immigration Law in Times of Crisis
On October 20, the International and Comparative Law Program hosted a discussion on immigration law and how the current moment of crisis fits within the recent history of U.S. immigration, law, institutions, and procedures. The discussion, organized via Zoom, featured panelists Professor Alberto Benitez and Anam Rahman, JD ’12, Partner, Calderon Seguin, and moderator Associate Dean Rosa Celorio. The panelists discussed where immigration matters are heading in the United States based on contemporary events, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the practice of immigration law, the potential effects of the U.S. presidential election in this field, and the connection of immigration issues today with present and historical racial discrimination in the United States.
Fireside Chat with Jun Jin, Deputy General Counsel, USAID
GW’s Law, Development, and Justice Society organized a fireside chat between Jun Jin, JD ’99, Deputy General Counsel, USAID, and Associate Dean Rosa Celorio. Mr. Jin shared his journey into international development law through government contracts, as well as important ongoing issues in the field, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. He highlighted that the international development community has put greater focus on tackling sexual and gender-based violence and racism and on seeking ways to address foreign-aid assistance even in the midst of a national crisis. His practical and honest advice on how to enter international law was particularly inspiring for many students: he stated that even though finding positions in international law immediately after students graduate from law school may be rare, there are many channels and opportunities students can use to engage in this seemingly “unicorn” field of law. He suggested students stay optimistic and take time to engage with GW Law professors, as networking can be a key tool in seeking new interests and career goals. He and Dean Celorio concluded the Fireside Chat by taking questions from students and providing tailored advice and answers.
COVID-19 and Enforced Disappearances
On Wednesday, October 28, LLM Class of 2021 student Mariam Gnakra organized an event on the COVID-19 crisis and enforced disappearances, co-sponsored by the International and Comparative Law Program, the International Law Society, and the Human Rights Law Society. Associate Dean Rosa Celorio served as a moderator during this event. One of the panelists, Carmen Rosa Villa, member of the U.N. Committee on Enforced Disappearances, discussed how the U.N. Treaty Based and Charter Based Organs are addressing the pandemic and the problem of enforced disappearances. Nerea Aparicio, Founder and Director of All in Rights and Governance, All in for Development, explained the key human rights standards connected to the question of enforced disappearances in the regional human rights protection system for the Americas. Rangita Da Silva de Alwis, Dean and Professor, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, shared testimonies of women in the Middle East and Asia to show the appalling impact of the issue on women and their human rights. Finally, in the closing comments, Ms. Gnakra stressed the need to open a space for civil society actors in the decision-making processes, adopt a victim-centered approach, and implement more comprehensive laws and policies to address the issue. 
Uyghur Human Rights Crisis: What are the Legal Options?
On Tuesday, November 10, the Human Rights Law Society and Uyghur Human Rights Initiative hosted the panel event The Uyghur Human Rights Crisis: What Are the Legal Options? Panelists included Nury Turkel, Commissioner, U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom; Rayhan Asat, President, American Turkic International Lawyers Association; Sophie Richardson, China Director, Human Rights Watch; and Regina Uyghur, Georgetown Law LLM student and Uyghur scholar. Professor Donald Clarke served as moderator. More than 80 attendees joined the event and discussed important issues such as the scope of the crisis, the international response, the application of international law, and the role individuals can play to assist the Uyghur cause. The Uyghur Human Rights Project shared several key articles and resources on ways to stay informed and involved, available here.
Training Held for Caribbean Government Officials 
On Wednesday, November 18, the International and Comparative Law program participated in a training for Caribbean government officials organized by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Organization of American States. The training included the participation and remarks from Margarette May Macaulay, Commissioner of the IACHR and Rapporteur on the Rights of Women and Afro-Descendent Persons; Dinah Shelton, Manatt/Ahn Professor Emeritus of International Law and former Commissioner and Chair of the IACHR; and Associate Dean Rosa Celorio. The event, which focused this year on the current pandemic and its human rights impacts in the Caribbean, included seminars and presentations from senior attorneys from IACHR and Caribbean government officials.