Researchers' Activities

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of South Korea held the Fifth International Conference on the Law of the Sea from December 3 to 4, 2020. The International Conference on the Law of the Sea has been held since 2016 to discuss the latest trends and progress in the research on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which regulates the peaceful usage of the sea and fair and effective utilization of its resources, and on the jurisprudence of relevant international organizations.

The theme for this year’s conference is Regional Cooperation and Marine Environmental Protection under the UNCLOS Regime. The first session of the conference covered the topic on “Duty of Cooperation under the UNCLOS Regime”. Dr Oral spoke on “The duty to cooperate under Part XII of UNCLOS and the protection and conservation of biological diversity beyond national jurisdiction”.

Other speakers who spoke alongside with Dr Oral include Amb. Markiyan Kulyk (ITLOS), Prof LEE Seok-Woo (Inha University), Judge Oscar Cabello Sarubbi (ITLOS) and Prof KIM Hyun Jung (Yonsei University).

This conference is co-organised with International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea and The Korean Society of International Law. For more information on the conference: https://www.icls.or.kr:43722/main/index.php

From 7 to 18 December 2020, The new United Nations Special Rapporteur on toxics and human rights, Marcos Orellana, will hold an institutional visit to the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

In view of his upcoming visit to the IMO, the Special Rapporteur, Dr  Marcos A. Orellana, invited stakeholders of the mandate, including civil society organizations, defenders of human rights and academics, to an online, focused stakeholders’ consultation on the IMO and implications for toxics and human rights.

Dr Oral was one of the experts invited to participate in the consultation, which aimed to inform the Special Rapporteur’s in preparation of his visit. It assessed and analyzed the work of the IMO in order to identify current issues and areas of improvement, as well as good practices.

More info at: https://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Environment/ToxicWastes/Pages/SRToxicWastesIndex.aspx

Dr Oral spoke at the Fourth Brazilian Congress of the Law of the Sea (IV Congresso Brasileiro de Direito do Mar), which was held online from 26 to 28 November. The event was co-organised by the Center for Studies in Law of the Sea (CEDMAR) at University of São Paulo and the Brazilian Academy of International Law (ABDI).

Dr Oral spoke on THE CURRENT STATE OF NEGOTIATIONS ON MGRS FOR THE BBNJ AGREEMENT.

Dr Nilüfer Oral spoke at the online conference titled Pandemics and International Law: The Need for International Action, on 18 November. The event was  co-organised by Washington College of Law and its Academy on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law; the Centre for International Law; the Vietnamese National University, Hanoi, School of Law; the Autonomous University of Lisbon; the Florida International University College of Law; and the WCL chapter of the International Law Student Association.

Dr Oral spoke alongside Professor Patrícia Galvão Teles, Professor Claudio Grossman, Professor Charles C Jalloh and Professor Nguyễn Hồng Thao. The event was moderated by Professor Claudia Martin.

On the occasion of the inter-sessional period in the negotiations of an international legally binding agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction – BBNJ, Dr Nilüfer Oral spoke at an online panel discussion on ‘A Dispute Settlement Mechanism for the BBNJ Instrument’. The event was organised by the Permanent Mission of Colombia to the United Nations and the Independent International Legal Advocates.

Dr Nilüfer Oral was invited to speak at the online closing address of the Public International Law Year in Review on 10 November. The event was co-organised by Essex Court Chambers, Essex Court Chambers Duxton (Singapore Group Practice), Fietta LLP, Rajah & Tann Singapore LLP, and The Sydney Centre for International Law.

Dr Oral spoke on ongoing negotiations for a legally binding agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction. Other panellists were Sir Michael Wood, Rodman Bundy and Dr Emily Crawford. The event was moderated by Jackie McArthur and Ryce Lee. At the end of the webinar, Professor Vaughan Lowe QC of Essex Court Chambers, and the University of Oxford, rounded off the session by giving the closing remarks.

Dr Nilüfer Oral chaired the online Informal BBNJ Intersessional High Seas Treaty Dialogue on Marine Genetic Resources, with Ms Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, who is the ex-Director of the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea under the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs. The topic of the November dialogue was marine genetic resources, and the event was co-hosted by the Kingdom of Belgium, the Principality of Monaco, the Republic of Costa Rica, in collaboration with the High Seas Alliance.

CIl Director Nilüfer Oral, Co-Chair of the International Law Commission (ILC) Study Group on Sea Level Rise in Relation to International Law with Professor Bogdan Aurescu, participated in an online informal interaction between ILC members and delegates of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Sixth Committee.

The session was chaired by Ambassador Milenko E Skoknic Tapia, Chair of the Sixth Committee of the United Nations General Assembly at its 75th session.

At the online side event of International Law Week, CIL Director Nilüfer Oral presented on sea-level rise and the law of the sea. Dr Oral and Professor Bogdan Aurescu, Co-Chairs of the International Law Commission’s Study Group on Sea-Level Rise in Relation to International Law, provided insights into the Study Group’s first issues paper published in February 2020, which covered issues of possible legal effects of sea-level rise on baselines and outer limits of maritime spaces measured from baselines, on the status of maritime features and on maritime delimitation effected either by treaty or adjudication. At the event, Dr Oral and Professor Aurescu spoke about how they approached the need to preserve legal stability, security, certainty and predictability.

CIL Director Nilüfer Oral spoke at an International Council of Environmental Law (ICEL) side-event briefing on strengthening cooperation for international environmental law on 27 October 2020. The event was cohosted by ICEL, the Permanent Missions of Costa Rica and France to the United Nations, the Observer Mission of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to the United Nations, and the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law (WCEL).

At the online event, distinguished scholars of international environmental law presented their expertise on options for opportune ‘next steps’ in the progressive development of international environmental law and organisation, to provide essential foundation for attaining the Sustainable Development Goals. Besides Dr Oral, other speakers included Professor Chikosa Banda from the University of Malawi, Professor Sergio Ugalde from the University for Peace (Costa Rica), Professor Christina Voigt from the University of Oslo, and Dr Lucien Chabason from the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations. The session was moderated by Professor Nicholas A Robinson from Pace University (New York).

The Norway-Singapore Science Week, which took place from 26 October to 6 November, is an important platform for developing and enhancing research and academic cooperation in key areas of interest to Norway and Singapore. During the Science Week, 70 professors, researchers, institution representatives and company executives presented and discussed research and technology development in the field of sustainable urban development, decarbonisation and ocean space.

A member of the organising committee, Professor Robert Beckman assisted in organising and co-chairing a webinar on Ocean Policy on 6 November 2020, Friday. The other co-chair was Professor Tore Henriksen, Director of the Norwegian Center for Law of the Sea, UiT, the Arctic University of Norway.

The Ocean Policy session covered two topics. The first topic, ‘Sea-Level Rise: Connecting Singapore to the Arctic’, was focussed on the impact of climate change in the Arctic on sea-level rise in Singapore and Southeast Asia. The speakers were Professor Benjamin Horton, Director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore; Dr Kristin Richter of Norwegian Research Center in Bergen, Norway; and CIL Director, Dr Nilüfer Oral. Dr Oral spoke about the implications of sea-level rise for international law and policy, in particular for maritime entitlements of States.

The second topic in the session was ‘Biodiversity in the Marine Environment of the Arctic’ and was focussed on the global challenges in protecting and preserving the marine environment. The speakers were Associate Professor Vito De Lucia of UiT, the Arctic University of Norway, and CIL Senior Research Fellow Youna Lyons. In her presentation, Youna Lyons compared the regimes governing the marine environment in the Arctic Ocean with those governing the marine environment in ASEAN and the South China Sea.

The webinar participants concluded that there was scope for continued collaboration in researching issues of common interest, given that Singapore is an Observer in the Arctic Council. A collaboration between the CIL and the Norwegian Center for Law of the Sea at UiT resulted in the co-edited book Governance of Arctic Shipping published in 2017.

CIL Director Nilüfer Oral was invited to speak at the 2020 Seoul Academy of International Law Lectures. Dr Oral delivered an online lecture on the law of the sea.

CIL Director Nilüfer Oral spoke on the panel on climate change and the law of the sea, at the American Bar International Law Association (ABILA) International Law Weekend. The panel explored how international law, especially the law of the sea, should account for sea-level rise, including regarding issues such as baselines and maritime entitlements, status of features, protection of the marine environment, and statehood of low-lying States and the rights of their nationals.

The panel was moderated by Aimee-Jane Lee from Debevoise & Plimpton LLP. Other speakers on the panel were Professor David Freestone from George Washington University, Ms Nicola Swan from Chapman Tripp, and Ambassador Nguyễn Hồng Thao from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam.

At an online event titled ‘Legal Implications of Pandemics: A Ten-Month Assessment’ on 16 October 2020, CIL Director Nilüfer Oral presented the topic ‘Is There a Need for Convention?’ The event was co-organised by the Permanent Missions of Chile, Portugal, Sierra Leone, Turkey and Vietnam, and moderated by Ambassador Francisco Duarte Lopes, Permanent Representative of Portugal. Speakers were members of the International Law Commission, which besides Dr Oral, included Professor Patrícia Galvão Teles, Professor Claudio Grossman, Professor Charles C Jalloh and Ambassador Nguyễn Hồng Thao.

CIL Director Nilüfer Oral spoke on ‘International Law and IUU Fishing’ at a webinar on ‘Fishing on the High Seas and Marine Protected Areas’ on 13 October 2020. The webinar was organised by the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law, in partnership with the Inter-American Institute on Justice and Sustainability. Globally renowned experts at this webinar provide perspectives on cooperation and legal responses for enforcement of international marine protection in exclusive economic zones.

The challenges of international illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing on the high seas is one of the most urgent issues for the global community seeking to protect marine reserves and the integrity of exclusive economic zones. IUU fleets that cross protected boundaries create problems for environmental security, international governance, and the livelihoods of local communities that depend on their marine resources.

On 9 October 2020 CIL Director Nilüfer Oral spoke at an online conference, UN at 75: Effective Multilateralism and International Law, which was jointly organised by the Office of Legal Affairs of the United Nations and the German Federal Foreign Office. The conference examines the evolution of international law since the UN’s establishment in 1945, the achievements of the UN in advancing international law, and its future in supporting multilateralism.

Dr Oral presented on ‘United Nations in International Law at 75: The Role of the General Assembly and Its Subsidiary Organs (ILC, Sixth Committee) and the Importance of Academia’.

At the online UN side event The Role of the Ocean in Climate Change and Sea Level Rise on 8 October 2020, CIL Director Nilüfer Oral spoke on ‘Ocean Acidification: A Conundrum for International Law?’ The event was organised by NGO Sustainability Inc and co-hosted by the UN Permanent Missions of Kenya, Portugal and Sri Lanka, the UN Division of Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, and UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

On 1 October 2020, CIL Director Nilüfer Oral delivered an online lecture on sea-level rise and the law of the sea at the annual ITLOS-Nippon Capacity-Building and Training Programme. The programme helped participants, who were junior to mid-level government officials and researchers from mainly developing countries, to develop their legal skills and deepen their practical knowledge of dispute settlement in the law of the sea under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

CIL Director Nilüfer Oral was a panellist at the webinar ‘Galapagos at Risk: International Marine Protection, Challenges and Legal Options’ on 17 September 2020. The webinar was organised by the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law, in partnership with the Inter-American Institute on Justice and Sustainability. Globally renowned experts at this webinar provided perspectives on cooperation and legal responses for enforcement of international marine protection in exclusive economic zones.

CIL Director Nilüfer Oral presented a paper titled ‘First Issues Paper on Sea Level Rise in Relation to International Law: Key Issues and Gaps’ at the UN Diplomacy Clinic organised by New York University’s Law Faculty on 10 September 2020. Dr Oral is the Co-Chair of the International Law Commission’s Study Group on Sea Level Rise in Relation to International Law.

At the online regional conference on Securing the Limits of the Blue Pacific organised by Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) on 9–11 September 2020, CIL Director Nilüfer Oral presented a paper titled ‘Legal Options and Institutional Responses to the Impacts of Sea Level Rise on Maritime Zones in the Context of International Law’.

In her presentation, Dr Oral spoke of a platform that will allow PIF members to examine the leaders’ commitment to preserving members’ existing rights stemming from maritime zones in the face of sea level rise. The conference outcomes will form the basis of recommendations to leaders on various legal options and institutional responses, to guide the region towards a collective effort to securing the Blue Pacific.

On 13 February 2019, Director Lucy Reed participated in the conference on ‘ISDS Reform: Mapping the Way Forward’ organised by the Asian Academy of International Law (AAIL) and the Hong Kong SAR Department of Justice. The welcoming speakers included Ms Teresa Cheng GBS SC JP, the Hong Kong SAR Secretary for Justice. The conference featured four panels—Investment Mediation, Appeal Mechanism for ISDS Awards, Third Party Funding in ISDS and Appointment of Arbitrators—and an Oxford Union style Debate on whether a Permanent Investment Court is a possible solution to ISDS problems. In an innovative approach, each panel had the benefit of a detailed discussion paper by a young private or government practitioner.

Professor Reed spoke on the Investment Mediation panel, on the topic of how to incentivise host governments and investors to use investor-State mediation. Also on the panel were (as pictured) Dr Anthony Neoh (AAIL Chairman), Professor Jack Coe from Pepperdine Law School and Paul Starr from King & Wood Mallesons. The discussion paper was from David Ng of the Hong Kong SAR Department of Justice.

On 18 January, Director Lucy Reed delivered the keynote address at the inaugural Schiefelbein Global Dispute Resolution Conference at the Sandra Day O’Connor School of Law at Arizona State University. Mr Lester Schiefelbein, the former Vice-President of Lockheed Martin Space Systems and CEO of the Silicon Valley Arbitration & Mediation Center, and his family have endowed this new Global Dispute Resolution Program for annual conferences and scholarships.

The title of Professor Reed’s address was ‘Ultima Thule: Prospects for International Commercial Mediation’, connecting the topic to Ultima Thule, the 4.5 billion-year-old rock newly discovered in outer-outer space and photographed by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft. Pending formal posting on the Shiefelbein Dispute Resolution Program website, a working copy of the address can be downloaded here.

The conference included panels on ‘Technology in Arbitration and Arbitration in Technology’, ‘China’s Belt and Road: Impressive Scale and Unprecedented Risk’ and ‘Atmospheric Arbitration: Resolving Climate Change Related Disputes’, as well as a roundtable with corporate counsel from Baker Hughes/GE Oil & Gas, Raytheon Missile Systems, Avent Inc and the American Arbitration Association. It was a global event, featuring speakers from Washington DC, San Francisco, New York, Phoenix, Houston, Tucson, London, Shenzen, Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, The Hague and Mexico City.

The conference was organised by Mr Lester Schiefelbein and Professors Victoria Sahani and Art Hinshaw of the Sandra Day O’Connor School of Law, pictured here with Professor Reed.

CIL Director Lucy Reed delivered a keynote address on 15 September 2018 at the Conference in Commemoration of Professor David D Caron held at the Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California at Berkeley. At the time of his tragic, premature death in February 2018, Professor Caron was sitting as a judge on the Iran-US Claims Tribunal, an ad hoc judge in two ICJ cases, and an arbitrator in several complex international arbitrations. He was formerly Dean of the Dickson Poon School of Law at Kings College London and a chaired professor of law at Berkeley. Professors Reed and Caron, who were friends for some 35 years, had both served as President of the American Society of International Law and Chair of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration.

The conference, entitled ‘The Elegance of International Law’, featured high-level panels focussed on Professor Caron’s main areas of interest: international dispute resolution, legitimacy of international law and institutions, and the law of the sea and international environmental law. In her keynote—‘The David Caron Rule of X’—Professor Reed described and developed a lecture Professor Caron gave at the opening of the year in September 2017 at MIDS (Masters in International Dispute Resolution) at the Graduate Institute in Geneva. This was a work in progress, in which Professor Caron focussed on the need for international arbitrators to exercise personal discipline to limit their caseloads to the number of arbitrations they can responsibly handle—namely, a personal ‘X’ number of arbitrations—and thereby facilitate the process of more appointments for a more diverse pool of arbitrators.

The conference papers will be published by the Berkeley Journal of International Law and the Ecology Law Quarterly.

CIL Director Lucy Reed spoke at the ‘Forum on the Belt and Road Legal Cooperation: Rules and Coordination’ in Beijing on 2–3 July 2018. The conference was co-hosted at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China and the China Law Society, with the Chinese Foreign Minister HE Wang Yi giving the keynote speech. The legal focus—the so-called ‘soft connectivity’ of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)—was underscored by the identity of the co-sponsors: Chinese Society of International Law, China University of Political Science and Law, University of International Business and Economics, Beijing Law Society, and Department of Justice of the Government of Hong Kong SAR.

Professor Reed spoke on arbitration and mediation of investor-state disputes, on the panel ‘The BRI and International Dispute Settlement’. The other main panels addressed ‘The BRI and International Rule of Law’, ‘Rules, Treaties and Laws Supporting the BRI’, and ‘BRI Legal Exchange and Cooperation’. The conference had over 350 invited participants from Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, the Caribbean and South America.