29 September 2010 | CIL Seminar Series

The Kosovo Advisory Opinion: Self-Determination, Secession, and Other Unanswered Questions

Introduction

On 22 July 2010, the International Court of Justice issued its long-awaited Advisory Opinion on Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence from Serbia. This panel discussion considered the opinion and what it does – and does not – mean for the norm of self-determination, other groups aspiring to secession, and the role of international law and institutions in such highly politicised situations.

About the Speakers

Professor SORNARAJAH is CJ Koh Professor of Law at the National University of Singapore. He has taught courses on International Commercial Arbitration, Foreign Investment Arbitration, International Investment Law and Public International Law at leading universities in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, China and Sri Lanka. He is also the Tunku Abdul Rahman Professor of International Law at the University of Malaya. He is admitted to practice law in England and Wales, Singapore and Sri Lanka. He is on the Regional Panel of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre and the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration. Professor Sornarajah specialises in settlement of disputes arising from foreign investment.

Professor Simon CHESTERMAN is Vice Dean and Professor at the National University of Singapore Faculty of Law, and Global Professor and Director of the New York University School of Law Singapore Programme. His areas of expertise include international law and institutions, state-building, and the regulation and oversight of intelligence services. He is a member of the editorial boards of various leading journals and the author or editor of eleven books, including Private Security, Public Order: The Outsourcing of Public Functions and Its Limits (Oxford, 2009) and Law and Practice of the United Nations (Oxford, 2008).