British Institute of International and Comparative Law

19/10/2026

Great to see this from our UK Ukraine English Law Forum meeting

13/10/2026

💡 New insight on the BIICL Blog

Argentina has announced its intention to initiate arbitration against the UK under Annex VII of UNCLOS and seek provisional measures from ITLOS in relation to the Sea Lion Project, which concerns hydrocarbon development in the North Malvinas Basin around the Falkland Islands/Islas Malvinas. What jurisdictional questions does this raise, and what might we expect from the proceedings?

In this new blog post, Abhijeet Shrivastava and Constantinos Yiallourides examine whether Argentina can bring proceedings under UNCLOS against the UK and explore the potential legal implications.

Read the full analysis 👉 https://www.biicl.org/blog/138/can-argentina-bring-unclos-proceedings-against-the-uk-concerning-the-exploitation-of-hydrocarbon-resources-in-the-north-malvinas-basin

This blog was originally published by EJIL: Talk!

11/10/2026

BIICL and the Society of Legal Scholars (SLS) International Law section, are delighted to be convening the annual joint workshop October 29, 2026 under the title 'The Daily Life of International Law'.

International law is a field which has direct effect in the lives of individuals and communities. The impacts are most obvious when we think about those who work and engage in international law activities including and beyond the realms of government and diplomacy - whether working for international organizations or engaging in cross-border trade. We often also think of impacts on the lives of people when international law fails to achieve its objectives especially around peace and security and the protection of human rights.

Equally, however, international law shapes the everyday life of people in ways that are often concealed from the media headlines and with little recognition of the international law link to those daily aspects of life. This applies in a wide range of contexts from the courts to the aisles of planes and of supermarkets. The ripple effects of recent international events on people's daily lives have brought more attention to these impacts.

The workshop examines these parameters and realities and seeks to elaborate on the countless ways in which international law is a daily lived reality, including the opportunities and challenges that this brings for those involved and for international law itself.

The panels will each discuss the daily life of international law across the following themes:

🔹 International bodies and institutions
🔹 Normative issues
🔹 Technology
🔹 Food, drink and housing
🔹 Vulnerability

You can access the full programme here:https://www.biicl.org/documents/13382_biicl_sls_daily_life_programme.pdf

This event is convened by Dr Jean-Pierre Gauci (BIICL) with Dr Solon Solomon (SLS).

Find out more and register here: https://www.biicl.org/events/12129/the-daily-life-of-international-law-biiclsls-workshop-2026

08/10/2026

Do mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence (mHREDD) and forced labour trade ban (FLTB) laws actually deliver for workers and other rightsholders?

Our new research explores the impacts of both types of laws, drawing on desk research, stakeholder consultations, 32 interviews with people with lived experience of forced labour and labour exploitation, and focus groups with 34 workers in Malaysia’s palm oil sector.

Overall, the research finds that while the evidence remains limited, both types of laws have had different yet complementary impacts. Together they have contributed to a range of remedies for various groups of rightsholders within and outside the countries with these laws, not least because CSOs and trade unions have been leveraging them. However, these impacts fall short of the expectations of people with lived experience, academics, civil society and human rights experts. Remedy remains the exception rather than the rule, and mostly in relation to past harm and to workers who are visible, formally employed and organised or attempting to organise.

By providing evidence of what has worked and what challenges persist in ensuring that mHREDD and FLTB laws work for rightsholders, this report aims to influence a better design, enforcement, implementation and evaluation of laws that aim to tackle forced labour and human rights abuses in global supply chains.

📄 Read the full report:https://www.biicl.org/documents/213_impacts_on_rightsholders_full_report.pdf
📄 Read the Malaysia palm oil case study: https://www.biicl.org/documents/13374_biicl-trp_malaysia_palm_oil_formatted.pdf

The project is led by Dr Sofía González De Aguinaga, PhD at BIICL, with support from the Modern Slavery and Human Rights Policy and Evidence Centre (The PEC), led by the University of Oxford.

07/10/2026

💡New Project: Security-Based Claims in International Law

In October 2026, the Centre for International Law at BIICL starts a new six-months research project, examining contemporary international perspectives and understandings of security-based claims in international law and how security objectives or concerns are often framed to justify State conduct across different areas of international law, including the law on the use of force, the law of the sea, energy, environmental and climate change law, human rights (including food security), and trade and investment law.

The topic of this research is particularly timely considering the increasing proliferation of security-based claims in contemporary State practice and the need to have clearer understanding of the legality and legal ramifications of such claims. 'Security-based claims' refer to positions or arguments advanced by States in international legal fora, or in the formulation and justification of State conduct, in which measures that would otherwise engage or potentially breach international legal obligations are defended by reference to the protection of security interests. Such claims invoke concepts such as national security, public security, essential security interests, energy security, food security, or related formulations, and are used to justify actions taken in response to perceived threats, risks, or vulnerabilities.

Project team: Kristin Hausler, Dr Julinda Beqiraj, Dr Jean-Pierre Gauci, Prof. Yarik Kryvoi and Dr Constantinos Yiallourides.

02/10/2026

Read the latest insight on the BIICL Blog from Noa Lou Brawermann: “The Cost of Regulatory Failure: How International Frameworks Enable Bangladesh’s Hazardous Shipbreaking Industry”.

The post explores a central question: why does international law, despite conventions designed to regulate hazardous waste and ship recycling, still allow end-of-life ships to be dismantled in unsafe conditions? Using Bangladesh as a case study, Noa examines how gaps in the current international regulatory framework allow private actors to circumvent regulations and rely on shipbreaking facilities in the Global South, at significant human and environmental cost.

👉 Find out more: https://www.biicl.org/blog/136/the-cost-of-regulatory-failure-how-international-frameworks-enable-bangladeshs-hazardous-shipbreaking-industry

24/09/2026

🌍 Expanding the BIICL Corporate Climate Litigation Platform: New Jurisdictions, New Tools and Emerging Global Trends

The BIICL Corporate Climate Litigation (CCL) Platform brings together comparative legal research, national reports and practical resources on climate litigation involving corporate actors. At its heart is the Global Toolbox on Corporate Climate Litigation, supported by an international network of National Rapporteurs and experts.

Join us online on 8 October 2026, 9:30–11:00 (UK time) to explore the next phase of the Platform and hear from National Rapporteurs from six jurisdictions as they discuss recent developments and emerging cross-jurisdictional trends in corporate climate litigation.

Chair and Introduction:
🔹 Dr Ivano Alogna, Senior Research Fellow in Environmental and Climate Change Law, BIICL, Director, Global Toolbox on Corporate Climate Litigation

Speakers:
🔹 Carolina Garrido, Environment and Justice in the Anthropocene, PUC-Rio, National Rapporteur for Brazil
🔹 Dr. Andreas Hösli, Kellerhals Carrard, University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, National Rapporteur for Switzerland
🔹 Prof. Emmanuel Kasimbazi, Makerere University, National Rapporteur for Uganda
🔹 Terysha Naicker, Environmental Law Association of South Africa, National Rapporteur for South Africa
🔹 Prof. andri wibisana, University of Indonesia, National Rapporteur for Indonesia
🔹 Prof. Hendrik Schoukens, Ghent University, National Rapporteur for Belgium

Register now 👉 https://biicl.beaconforms.com/form/55231b6b

Explore climate litigation cases and legal frameworks across different jurisdictions worldwide.

18/09/2026

As part of our ongoing research on immunities and international crimes, BIICL hosted an event in The Hague exploring the contemporary relevance of the pioneering work undertaken by the United Nations War Crimes Commission (UNWCC) in the 1940s.

The discussion examined the Commission’s legacy and its continuing relevance to contemporary debates on immunities and international crimes.

The event featured contributions from Judge Joanna Korner CMG KC, Prof. Dan Plesch and Anthony Wenton and was chaired by Persijn (Percy) De Vries.

Thank you to SOAS University of London for kindly sponsoring the event.

You can watch the recording here 👇👇

As part of our ongoing research on immunities and international cri...

17/09/2026

🌍 Last Chance to Register: Public International Law in Practice Short Course

Gain practical insights into the key principles and latest developments shaping public international law. Led by many of the Institute's leading researchers and practitioners, the course gathers primarily senior practitioners, academics and government officials to improve their knowledge of key areas international law from the sources of international law to the law of armed conflict, from human rights to international investment law.

Don’t miss your chance to join us. Register today 👉 https://www.biicl.org/events/12103/short-course-public-international-law-in-practice

Course topics and tutors:
🔹 Legal Foundations of Public International Law - Dr Jack Kenny
🔹 International Human Rights Law - Kristin Hausler
🔹 International Law Concerning Armed Conflict - Dr Jack Kenny
🔹 International Criminal Law - Kiran Mohandas Menon
🔹 International Trade Law - Dr Julinda Beqiraj
🔹 International Investment Law - Professor Yarik Kryvoi
🔹 International Environmental and Climate Change Law - Dr Ivano Alogna
🔹 Law of the Sea - Dr Constantinos Yiallourides
🔹 Business and Human Rights - Dr Irene Pietropaoli
🔹 International Migration and Refugee Law - Dr Jean-Pierre Gauci

BIICL members receive a 20% discount on course fees. Join our global community and take advantage of exclusive member benefits: https://www.biicl.org/events/12103/short-course-public-international-law-in-practice

10 Sessions: 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 October, 5, 12, 19, 26 November and 3 December 2026, Online

16/09/2026

Last chance to apply for our AI Law & the Creative Economy PgCert.

AI is transforming the creative economy, raising key regulatory questions: What responsibilities do AI companies have when training models on creative content and personal data? If an AI model causes harm, who is liable? Can competition law keep digital markets open, innovative and fair for creators, publishers and new entrants? How can regulators address these emerging challenges?

These are some of the questions explored in the AI Law and the Creative Economy postgraduate certificate, delivered by BIICL in partnership with University of Glasgow and CREATe (Centre for the Regulation of the Creative Economy).

Find out more and apply 👉 https://www.biicl.org/events/12097/ai-law-the-creative-economy-pgcert