The Role of Ethics in International Law

The purpose of this volume is to explore what role ethical discourse plays in international law.

Donald Earl Childress, III (Edited by)

9781107096554, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 14 November 2011

292 pages, 1 table
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.7 cm, 0.56 kg

The purpose of this book is to explore what role ethical discourse plays in public and private international law. The book seeks (1) to delineate the role of ethical investigation in creating, sustaining, challenging and changing international law and (2) to open up a conversation between two related disciplines - public and private international law - that frequently labor in different vineyards. By examining the role of ethical discourse in international law's public and private dimensions, this volume will hopefully open new avenues for cross-disciplinary exchange in these important fields and related disciplines. The chapters in this book show that there is a way to engage the ethical dimension of international law without seeking to use ethics as raw politics and the will to power.

Part I. The Role of Ethics in Public International Law: 1. Moral reasoning in international law Roger P. Alford and James Tierney
2. Between power and principle Oona A. Hathaway
3. Jus cogens: international law's higher ethical norms Mary Ellen O'Connell
Part II. The Role of Ethics in Private International Law: 4. The problem of provenance: the proper place of ethical reasoning in the selection of applicable law Lea Brilmayer
5. Choice of law as general common law: response to Professor Brilmayer Michael Steven Green
6. A reply Lea Brilmayer
7. The natural law challenge to choice of law Perry Dane
8. The role of ethics in United States private international law Donald Earl Childress III
Part III. Normative and Theoretical Perspectives: 9. The nature of human rights theory: beyond the ethical/political divide Samantha Besson
10. The ethic of international law H. Patrick Glenn.

Subject Areas: Public international law [LBB], Legal ethics & professional conduct [LATC]