Researchers' Activities

CIL Senior Research Fellow Dr. Hao Duy Phan participated at the 11th Annual Asian Law Institute (ASLI) Conference – “Law in Asia: Balancing Tradition and Modernization” on 29-30 May 2014 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Conference was jointly organized by the University of Malaya and the Asian Law Institute (ASLI). At the Conference, Dr. Hao Duy Phan made a presentation on ASEAN and Maritime Security. He also chaired a session on Environmental Law. To download Dr. Hao Duy Phan’s PowerPoint Presentation, click here.

CIL Director Robert Beckman and Captain Roach served as academic experts at the 2nd ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Seminar on UNCLOS, which was co-organised by Australia and the Philippines. Professor Beckman made presentations on “Rights and Responsibilities of States on the High Seas and in the Exclusive Economic Zone” (download in PDF) and on “Legal Framework for Joint Development in the South China Sea” (download in PDF). Captain Roach made presentations on “Freedom of Navigation and Overflight” (download in PDF) and on “ITLOS Provisional Measures and Prompt Release” (download in PDF).

CIL Director Robert Beckman and Captain Roach served as experts in the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP) Workshop on UNCLOS and Maritime Security in East Asia, which was organised by US CSCAP and CSCAP Philippines. Professor Beckman made a presentation on “UNCLOS and Protection and Preservation of the Marine Environment” (download in PDF). Captain Roach made a presentation on “UNCLOS and Freedom of Navigation” (download in PDF).

CIL Research Fellow Leonardo Bernard participated in the South China Sea Panel: Current Disputes and Possible Future Outcomes of the Multi-Dimensional Conflict, held at the Asian Civilization Museum, Singapore on 26 May 2014. The Panel was organized by Singapore’s American Chamber of Commerce. Leo joined the panel where he addressed legal issues associated with current state of disputes in the South China Sea.

CIL Director Robert Beckman gave a lecture in the Foreign Service Advance Programme organised by the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The lecture was on “Current Issues in International Law and Implications for Singapore”.

Senior Principal Research Fellow Christopher Thomas QC chaired a session at the Rule of Law Symposium 2014 on “The Importance of The Rule of Law in Promoting Development”. He is a co-editor of the Symposium proceedings under the general editorship of Sir Jeffrey Jowell. This was the second year that the Singapore Academy of Law organised this Symposium in collaboration with the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law.

CIL Director Robert Beckman gave lectures on the law of the sea to navy officers in the RSIS graduate course on Maritime Security Studies.

CIL Director Robert Beckman and CIL Global Associate Tara Davenport attended the Singapore-US Strategic Dialogue 2014, which was held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington DC.

CIL Director Robert Beckman made a presentation on 30 April 2014 in a panel on Aerial Defence Identification Zones (ADIZs) at the 27th Annual International Military Law and Operations (MILOPS) Engagement organized by the US Pacific Command, which was held from 27 April – 2 May 2014 at the Diamond Hotel, Manila, Philippines. To view the slides from his presentation, click here.

CIL’s Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy, Prof. Michael Ewing-Chow and CIL’s RA Junianto James Losari attended the 3rd Post Graduate and Early Professionals Network of the Society for International Economic Law (SIEL/PEPA) in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Prof. Michael Ewing-Chow delivered an opening speech with the topic of “Global economic governance: what levels for appropriate coordination and world social and economic development?” James delivered his presentation titled: “Investor Rights in International Investment Agreements: A Theory of Dependent Rights?” For more information and to download the presentation, click here.

CIL Senior Research Fellow Dr. Hao Duy Phan was invited to speak at the ASEAN Regional Workshop on “The Promulgation of Laws and Regulations of ASEAN Member States: A Comparative Study” on 23-24 April 2014 in Jakarta, Indonesia. Hao Duy Phan delivered a presentation on “Treaty-Making and the Status of Treaties in ASEAN Member States: An Overview”. The Workshop was jointly organized by the Ministry of Law and Human Rights, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia and the ASEAN Secretariat (ASEC). More than 100 participants from ASEAN Member States attended the Workshop. To download Hao Duy Phan’s PowerPoint Presentation, click here.

CIL’s Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy, Prof. Michael Ewing-Chow along with CIL’s RA Junianto James Losari were invited to attend the first Forum on International Trade and Investment (FORTRIN) meeting. Former WTO Deputy Director General Alejandro Jara, now with King & Spalding hosted the meeting. Michael and James attended by videoconference from the King & Spalding office in New York, together with Prof. Karl Sauvant of the Vale Centre of Columbia University. The meeting was attended trade and investment experts from Geneva, London, Paris, Washington DC, and New York all linked by videoconference. FORTRIN aims to provide a platform to promote the application and development of trade and investment rules with a view to bolstering the global legal framework for international economic law activity. During the first meeting, the discussion revolved around how to frame the issues of current investment rules. This is an important foundation if a multilateral approach on investment rules were to be proposed. In his intervention, Prof. Michael Ewing-Chow suggested a way to contextualize the current issues by looking through the global value chains lens, as governments will be more interested in exploring further the idea of multilateral investment agreement if they can be more integrated to the value chains. The discussion also touched upon several challenges to this effort, among others: the growing reluctance of governments in being subjected to Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS), the need for a better fact-finding procedure in international arbitration, the need to address burning issues such as abusive treaty shopping, and the need to educate the stakeholders, including the civil society. Preparations are required to deal with these matters before one can move towards creating a multilateral investment framework.

CIL’s Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy, Prof. Michael Ewing-Chow and CIL’s RA Junianto James Losari were invited by the DC Bar’s International Dispute Resolution Committee to attend a lunchtime panel discussion on “Changes in the System of Investor-State Dispute Settlement: Viewpoints from the Americas” that was held on 10 April 2014 at the office of Arnold & Porter LLP in Washington DC. The panelists (Anna Joubin-Bret, Jonathan S. Kallmer, and Omar Garcia-Bolivar) presented their findings of the current state of development in investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) in both North America and South America. Michael and James were invited to share their views on the developments in Asia and in particular ASEAN and Asia. During the discussion that was moderated by Jean Kalicki, various innovations were mentioned on how countries sought to improve the current legal frameworks. These innovations are to be implemented both at domestic and international levels and could be considered as fresh ideas for currently ongoing IIAs negotiations, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. Michael said that the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA) has introduced several innovations, making it a more balanced agreement both in terms of investor protection and preserving the governments’ policy space. Separately, James queried whether there was any plans to consolidate agreements in the Americas, given that Asia has plans to do so under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiation.

CIL Director Robert Beckman attended the 76th Biennial Conference of the International Law Association (ILa) and 108th Annual Meeting of the American Society of International Law (ASIL) in Washington DC. The ASIL Annual Meeting and the ILA Biennial Conference were organised jointly and held together. The other CIL staff who attend the meetings were Michael Ewing-Chow, James Losari, Leonardo Bernard and Hao Duy Phan.

Professor Joseph Weiler, Director of the CIL ASEAN Integration Through Law Project (President of the European University Institute; NUS Law School; and University Professor at the NYU School of Law (on-leave)) convened and chaired the discussions on the ASEAN Economic Community at Plenary 4 of the ASEAN Integration Through Law Project: The ASEAN Economic Community at the Sofitel Plaza Hotel, Hanoi, Vietnam. CIL senior expert, Professor Michael-Ewing-Chow, shared his work on the ASEAN economic integration and investment regime. He also co-taught the Course Development Workshop on Investment during the event. This Plenary was hosted jointly with the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam. For more information, please click here.

CIL Director Robert Beckman served as the coordinator and main lecturer in an International Law Course CIL conducted for government officials from more than 20 countries. The course was conducted under the auspices of the Singapore Cooperation Program of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Prof Beckman made presentations and led discussions in 14 sessions of 90 minutes each over the 5-day course. Assoc Prof Michael Ewing-Chow and Christopher Thomas also made presentations. CIL Research Fellow Ranyta Yusran played a major role in organising the course and the course materials. CIL Research Fellows Hao Duy Phan and Leonardo Bernard also led discussions at the course.

CIL Director Robert Beckman and CIL Research Associate Monique Page were invited to attend the annual meeting of the International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Prof Beckman made a presentation on ‘UNCLOS and the 2012 OSPAR Guidelines on BEP in Cable Laying and Operation’.

CIL Director Robert Beckman participated in the Norway-Singapore Arctic Symposium at the Riverview Hotel on 14 March 2014. The symposium was organised by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), the Norwegian Embassy and the Singapore Maritime Institute (SMI). The keynote speaker was Else Berit Eikeland, Norway’s senior Arctic official in the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Prof Beckman made a presentation on “UNCLOS and Prevention of Pollution in the Arctic”. For a copy of his presentation, click here.

The International Economic Law and Policy (IELPO) LL.M Programme of the Universidad de Barcelona invited CIL Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy Professor Michael Ewing-Chow for the second consecutive year to teach ‘Regionalism in Asia’ as part of their programme. The course was held on 10-11 March 2014 and focused on the unique features of Asian Regionalism, with an emphasis on the trade and investment aspects of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).

CIL staff organised and participated in the ‘International Conference on Transboundary Pollution: Evolving Issues of International Law and Policy’. The conference was held at the Orchard Hotel, Singapore. Prof Tommy Koh and Prof S Jayakumar served as co-chairs of the conference. CIL Director Robert Beckman presented a paper on ‘State Responsibility for Transboundary Marine Pollution’, CIL Senior Research Fellow Youna Lyons presented a paper on ‘Transboundary Pollution from Offshore Activities: A Study of the Montara Offshore Oil Spill’, and Prof Alan Tan presented a paper on ‘Co-operative and Unilateral Mechanisms to Combat Forest Fires and Transboundary Haze’ in Southeast Asia. CIL Senior Research Fellow Hao Duy Phan played a major role in organising the Conference. CIL Research Staff Members Hao Duy Phan, Monique Page, Leonardo Bernard, Ranyta Yusran and Zhen Sun served as rapporteurs of the Conference, while Yvette Anthony served as Master of Ceremony. For more information on the Conference, please click here.

CIL Director Robert Beckman and CIL Research Associate Monique Page attended a CSCAP Experts Group Meeting on Security of Vital Undersea Communications Infrastructure on Monday 17 February in Jakarta. On Tuesday 18 February they will be attending a meeting of the CSCAP Study Group on Maritime Security. CSCAP is Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP). The Study Group is co-chaired by CSCAP Singapore, CSCAP Indonesia and CSCAP New Zealand. Prof Beckman will be making presentations at both of the meetings. For a copy of his presentation at the CSCAP Experts Group Meeting, click here.

CIL Research Associate, Junianto James Losari spoke in the Plenary Discussion on Cooperative Ventures toward ASEAN Integration. The Plenary discussion was a part of the full day Business Law Convention held by De La Salle University College of Law in cooperation with the Department of Trade and Industry of the Philippines on Doing Business in Free Trade Areas: Cooperative Ventures toward ASEAN Integration. The event, attended by almost 1,000 students, academia and business community, was meant to raise awareness about the upcoming ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in 2015. For more information, click here.

On 8-9 February 2014, CIL Research Associate Junianto James Losari judged three preliminary rounds and the final round of the 2014 Indonesian National Rounds of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, held at Universitas Pelita Harapan (UPH), Indonesia. Universitas Indonesia and UPH respectively came as the Champion and the Runner Up of the competition in which 17 universities participated. In April, the two teams along with Universitas Udayana (Exhibition Team) will compete in Washington DC, USA.

CIL Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy and Singapore’s WTO Chair, Prof. Michael Ewing-Chow and CIL Research Associate, Junianto James Losari taught Investment Law at the Master in Trade, Investment and Competition Law & Policy Program of Universitas Pelita Harapan in Jakarta, Indonesia. The 5-day intensive course (3-7 February 2014) cover various aspects of international investment law. For more information, click here.

CIL Director Robert Beckman visited the International Boundaries Research Unit (IBRU) of Durham University in order to discuss continued links between IBRU and CIL. While at the University, Prof Beckman also met with members of the Faculty of Law.