Foreign Relations & International Law

Custom's Future: International Law in a Changing World

Jack Goldsmith
Monday, March 7, 2016, 11:20 AM

That is the title of a new book edited by Curtis Bradley. The book’s description:

Published by The Lawfare Institute
in Cooperation With
Brookings

That is the title of a new book edited by Curtis Bradley. The book’s description:

Although customary international law has long been an important source of rights and obligations in international relations, there has been extensive debate in recent years about whether this body of law is equipped to address complex modern problems such as climate change, international terrorism, nuclear proliferation, global financial instability, and cyber warfare. In addition, there is growing uncertainty about how, precisely, international and domestic courts should identify rules of customary international law. Custom’s Future seeks to address this uncertainty by providing a better understanding of how customary international law has developed over time, the way in which it is applied in practice, and the challenges that it faces going forward. Reflecting an interdisciplinary mix of historical, empirical, economic, philosophical, and doctrinal analysis, and containing chapters by leading international law experts, it will be of use to lawyers, judges, and researchers alike.

The table of contents is here. Good authors on good topics. Recommended.


Jack Goldsmith is the Learned Hand Professor at Harvard Law School, co-founder of Lawfare, and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. Before coming to Harvard, Professor Goldsmith served as Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel from 2003-2004, and Special Counsel to the Department of Defense from 2002-2003.

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