International Judicial Monitor
Published by the International Judicial Academy, Washington, D.C., with assistance from the
American Society of International Law

Spring 2016 Issue

International Judicial Monitor Celebrates Tenth Anniversary

Dr. James G. Apple  

By: James G. Apple
Editor-in-Chief, International Judicial Monitor and
President, International Judicial Academy

In February of 2006, representatives of the International Judicial Academy and the American Society of International Law met to discuss the possibility of starting a new publication with a non-academic approach that would be devoted to articles about international law and about judges and courts. At that time the exact nature of the publication, and what form it would take were topics of discussion.

During the lengthy discussions some ideas about the nature of the publication and its format began to come clear. Eventually it was agreed that the publication would be like a journal, that it would be digital and presented on-line, that it would feature articles appealing to a wide audience and not just academic persons, that the articles in it would be short and written in a style that would be comprehensible to lay persons as well as lawyers, judges, government officials and academics, and that it should be targeted for publication four times a year. Another decision made at that time was that the journal would also contain regular commentary that would focus on a particular subject.

Other matters that were decided included the selection of a “publisher,” and a determination that the journal would consist of two columns of articles. After some inquiry about available names for the publication, International Judicial Monitor was selected as the name for the new journal. A target date for the publishing of the first issue was agreed on, sometime during the month of March of that year. The target for number of articles was to be six to eight. Other contents of the first issues were sections with announcements about the two producers of the journal.

The first issue of the International Judicial Monitor did appear during March of 2006. It was sent to supporters of the International Judicial Academy and to members of the American Society of International Law. This spring is the 10th anniversary of that occasion.

There have been 34 issues of the Monitor during its decade of existence, containing over 250 articles. Over the past decade the Monitor has featured articles about the most prominent members of the international law community; profiles of the growing number of international courts; commentary on how international law affects individual lives in all parts of the world; commentary about significant events in international law history; reviews of significant books about international law, judges and courts; and special reports about developments in court systems and legal issues of international interest.

Significantly, in 2011, the Monitor was selected by the legal publisher Lexis Nexus as one of the best (“top”) international blogs on the Internet.

The Monitor has changed over the ten-year period it has been in existence. It was expanded from two columns to three in the Fall 2012 issue. Each issue now has 10 to 12 articles. Sections that included announcements and recent cases in international courts were dropped. The Monitor recruited a regular columnist – Justice Richard Goldstone, former member of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and first prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia. Justice Goldstone contributes a column every issue titled “Global Judicial Perspective”. The Monitor recently engaged a new “foreign” correspondent, Iva Vukusic, regularly reports on international matters from The Hague in a column titled “Hague Happenings.”

Publishing the Monitor the past ten years has been a very satisfying venture. The journal now has over 4000 subscribers, and hopefully that subscriber total can be doubled in the next five years. It is free and may be subscribed to by means of the small box at the bottom of the first column in each issue – a very simple matter of typing in an e-mail address and then clicking “send.” We invite new readers to subscribe and be enlightened about international legal matters in the years to come.


Lexis/Nexis Top 25 Blogs Logo
Ronny Abraham Justice in Profile
Ronny Abraham, France
President, International Court of Justice

By: James G. Apple,  Editor-in-Chief, International Judicial Monitor

Ronny Abraham, the relatively new (February 6, 2015) President of the International Court of Justice, started his legal career as an administrative tribunal judge, immediately after graduating from the National School of Administration.
(Read More »)
   
The Court of Justice of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA)
International Tribunal Spotlight
The Court of Justice of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) States
By: James G. Apple,  Editor-in-Chief, International Judicial Monitor

It is not commonly known that there are some western European countries that are not a part of the European Union. The EU currently has 27 member states, but that list does not include Norway, Luxembourg, and Iceland. (Read More »)

   
100 Ways
100 Ways
International Law: One Hundred Ways It Shapes Our Lives

Being less concerned about which airline you use because of international safety standards.

By: James G. Apple, Editor-in-Chief, International Judicial Monitor

(Read More »)

   
Henry Dunant
Leading Figures in International Law
Henry Dunant, Swiss

By: James G. Apple, Editor-in-Chief, International Judicial Monitor

Henry Dunant was the founder of one of the most important and durable charitable organizations in the world – the Red Cross.
(Read More »)

 
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Editorial

The United States Judiciary and Judicial Institutions in Harm’s Way – A Cause for Alarm
By: James G. Apple, Editor-in-Chief, International Judicial Monitor

The United States of America was founded largely through the activities and influence of lawyers. (Read More »)

  Dr. James G. Apple
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International Law Analysis and Commentary

Challenges to the Rule of Law and the Independence of the Judiciary

By: Hans Corell, Former Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and Legal Counsel of the United Nations

The celebration of the 10th anniversary of the founding of the International Judicial Monitor offers an opportunity to reflect on the developments in the field of human rights and the rule of law over the past decade.
(Read More »)

  Hans Corell
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Hague Happenings

Efforts to Fight Impunity Globally: A Talk With Stephen Rapp
By: Iva Vukusic, International Judicial Monitor Correspondent in The Hague

After serving as Ambassador-at-Large heading the Office of Global Criminal Justice in the U.S. State Department for six years, Stephen Rapp will now spend the next few months in The Hague, at the Institute for Global Justice. (Read More »)

 

Iva Vukusic

 

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Special Report

The Steady March for Civil Rights in the United States – the Experience of the U.S. District Court of Maryland
By: Peter J. Messitte, Judge, U.S. District Court, District of Maryland

I remember traveling across the Chesapeake Bay to Ocean City on the ferry, which had separate waiting rooms, bathrooms and water fountains for white and colored.
(Read More »)

 

Peter J. Messitte, Judge, U.S. District Court, District of Maryland

 

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Global Judicial Perspective

The Trial of Radovan Kradzic
By: Richard A. Goldstone, Former Justice, Constitutional Court of South Africa, First Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia, and Regular Columnist, International Judicial Monitor

On March 25, 2016 a trial chamber of the United National Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) convicted Radovan Karadzic on 10 of the 11 counts on which he was indicted. (Read More »)

  Richard A. Goldstone
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Special Report

The Role of Amicus Curiae Submissions at International Criminal Tribunals
By: Hannah Woolaver, Senior Lecturer in International Law, Faculty of Law, University of Cape Town, South Africa

Unlike other international institutions, international criminal tribunals use an adjudicative process to determine individual criminal responsibility. (Read More »)

 

Peter J. Messitte, Judge, U.S. District Court, District of Maryland

 

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Historic Moments in International Law

The Very Fine Art of Oath Swearing
By: Stephen  C.  Neff, Reader in Law – Public International Law, University of Edinburgh Law School

As modern-day humanitarian lawyers well know, there is a world of juridical difference between ruses of war and perfidy. (Read More »)

 
Stephen C. Neff
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In Review: Books About International Law and About Courts and Judges

Divergent Paths: The Academy and the Judiciary
By: Richard A. Posner. Harvard University Press. 2016

Reviewed by: James G. Apple, Editor-in-Chief, International Judicial Monitor

In 1936 a prominent Yale law professor named Fred Rodell (author of a book about the Supreme Court of the United States titled Nine Men) wrote an article for the Virginia Law Review titled “Goodbye to Law Reviews” (37 Va.L.Rev. 1785). (Read More »)

  Divergent Paths: The Academy and the Judiciary
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Special Report

The Crime of Genocide and the International Court of Justice Judgment in 2015 in the Case of Croatia vs. Serbia
By: Mahmudul Hasan, Research and Publication Officer, Human Rights Support Center (HRSC), Bangladesh

From the beginning of international law concerns about genocide and other mass crimes, it was considered a category of crime against humanity, not having been prosecuted as a special crime.
(Read More »)

 
Mahmudul Hasan
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ASIl & International Judicial AcademyInternational Judicial Monitor
© 2016 – The International Judicial Academy
with assistance from the American Society of International Law.

Editor: James G. Apple.
IJM welcomes comments, suggestions, and submissions.
Please contact the IJM editor at ijaworld@verizon.net.