Amicus Curiae Brief of Australian International Law Scholars in Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald K. Anton
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Amicus Curiae

Requirements for Amicus Curiae Participation in International Investment ArbitrationA Deconstruction of the Procedural Wall Erected in Joint ICSID Cases ARB/10/25 and ARB/10/15

2013 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 365-390 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Schliemann
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
International Investment ◽  
Recent Attempt ◽  
Arbitral Tribunal ◽  
Amicus Curiae ◽  
Legal Rules ◽  
Investment Arbitration ◽  
Legal Standard ◽  
Investment Law

Abstract The legal standard on amicus curiae participation in international investment arbitration has been forged by the judicial development of legal rules and, in parallel, the modification of normative sources, such as the ICSID Arbitration Rules. Current and future decisions by arbitral tribunals on the participation of amicus curiae in a given dispute must abide by this consolidated standard. In June 2012, the arbitral tribunal in Joint ICSID Cases No. ARB/10/15 and No. ARB/10/25 released a procedural order, rejecting an amicus petition. This Order contains various deviations from the applicable legal standard and severely restricts the options for amicus participation. The recent attempt to strengthen the legitimacy of international investment arbitration by allowing for greater amicus participation and the acknowledgement of the interdependence of investment law and other areas of international law is thereby put in peril.

The Common Law (And Not Roman) Origins of Amicus Curiae in International Law – Debunking a Fake News Item

Global Jurist ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luigi Crema
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Common Law ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
Roman Law ◽  
Primary Sources ◽  
News Item ◽  
Amicus Curiae ◽  
Ius Commune ◽  
Legal Literature ◽  
The Common

Abstract The possibility for private entities interested in international trials but without the legal requirements to participate as a party was precluded, in a classical vision of international law made for states and addressed to states. At present, however, with some notable exceptions, several international jurisdictions allow for the submission of amicus curiae briefs. These briefs were introduced to international courts by common law lawyers. Legal literature generally identifies it as an institution of classical Roman law. This paper will show that this assumption is, however, doubtful. An examination of the sources cited by an important dictionary and other decades-old legal scholarship relied upon today as establishing the Roman origins of amicus curiae, and a fresh study of Roman and later continental European primary sources reveal a different picture: in reality, there is neither a basis for grounding the amicus curiae in Roman law, nor is there a basis for grounding it in the medieval continental ius commune. The primary source is most likely English common law and, not surprisingly, it was common law lawyers who introduced the briefs into international litigation.

scholarly journals The Expertise Function of Amicus Curiae in International Criminal Justice

2020 ◽  
pp. 115-129
Author(s):  
E. A. Kopylova
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
Professional Associations ◽  
International Criminal Law ◽  
International Treaties ◽  
Amicus Curiae ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Proceedings ◽  
Scientific Methods ◽  
Russian Scientific

INTRODUCTION. While abroad over the past decades both comprehensive research and publications touching on individual aspects of amicus curiae in international law have been edited, it garnered only very little scholarly attention in Russian scientific literature. The frequency of its use and the nature of its impact on international judicial and quasi-judicial proceedings vary among branches of international law. This article considers one of the functions that an amicus curiae may perform in international criminal proceedings – the function of expertise.MATERIALS AND METHODS. The article is based on the existing volume of scientific knowledge in different branches of international law, such as law of international treaties, international criminal law, law of international organizations, human rights law, international economic law, history of international law and others. The research is based on the conclusions and inferences achieved mainly in the foreign doctrine of international law including publications of this year, due to the low degree of development of the topic in Russian literature. The empirical basis of the research is formed by international legal acts, internal acts of international criminal tribunals, materials of proceedings relating to interstate disputes, international advisory proceedings, practice of international criminal courts. The methodology used is a combination of general scientific methods of cognition (methods of analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, critical and dialectical) and private scientific methods typical for legal sciences (historical, comparative).RESEARCH RESULTS. International criminal courts actively rely on the amicus curiae mechanism to obtain information, both legal and factual, on issues under consideration in criminal proceedings. The admission of amicus curiae to international criminal proceedings is entirely at the discretion of the judiciary. In practice, amicus curiae applications are submitted by subjects of international law, international non-governmental organizations, natural and legal persons and professional associations.DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS. Too frequent use of amicus curiae mechanism seems to be difficult to reconcile with the iura novit curia maxima. Its current practice provides fertile ground for all kinds of abuse and needs to be reviewed. In particular, the experience of the UN International Court of Justice, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and the UN Commission on International Trade Law could be instructive in this regard.

Testing Amici Curiae in International Law: Rules and Practice

2013 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luigi Crema
Keyword(s):  
Public Participation ◽  
International Law ◽  
Final Decision ◽  
Amicus Curiae ◽  
General Development ◽  
International Courts ◽  
Political Role ◽  
Common Problems ◽  
New Procedures

Amici curiae are persons interested in a trial but not party to it that submit an unsolicited written brief or make an oral statement before the bench. The widespread possibility to submit amicus curiae briefs in international courts and tribunals is a recent phenomenon. Traditionally international procedures did not allow this kind of intervention. The purpose of this paper is to take stock of this evolution and assess the functioning of the new procedures. It does this by looking comparatively at several courts and tribunals, in order to get a picture of the commonalities and common problems surrounding this general development. Two sets of questions are considered, the first centered on issues of transparency and public participation, the second on the rights of the parties. Among the elements that deal with public participation, the paper examines the clarity of the procedures, the equality of the treatment of all the interested entities, the conditions and reasons for accepting or refusing the proposed amici, and the inclusion of the amici submissions in the text of the final decision. The other set of questions, concerning the rights and interests of the parties to the dispute, includes their role in the submission phase and their interest in efficient proceedings. In answering these questions, serious issues of transparency, publicity, and the political role of states acting as amici emerge. The paper concludes that further reflection is necessary on the origins of these problems, but that a first, important step can be achieved by addressing these procedural issues.

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