Annual BIICL/SLS Workshop - Call for Papers

BIICL/ SLS Workshop 2023: 

Non-State Actors in International Law

Conference will take place 20 November 2023 

Whilst international law remains very much 'State based' in that its core subjects are States themselves, individuals, corporations and other non-State entities are playing an increasingly important role in the evolution of international law, its implementation and even its enforcement. Judicial and quasi-judicial bodies regularly receive communications and cases initiated by individuals; NGOs are bringing cases before domestic courts challenging instances of the non-application of international law; there is a growing body of work on regulating the human rights responsibilities of multi-national corporations; non-State armed groups, including terrorist organisations, often exercise considerable public power, including in the context of war; and NGOs regularly implement development and humanitarian aid projects whilst also advocating for and contributing to the creation of new international standards, and subscribing themselves to international accountability frameworks.

The British Institute of International and Comparative Law and the International Law Section of the Society of Legal Scholars will convene an online workshop to take place on 20 November 2023. The workshop's theme will be non-State actors in international law, specifically the role that non-State actors play in the creation, development, implementation, and enforcement of international law and how such non-State actors are increasingly regulated by international law. Discussions around innovative avenues of engagement by non-State actors with international law, and evolving practices to ensure compliance with international standards by non-State actors in both war and peacetime, are of particular interest.

Call For Papers

The convenors welcome contributions which address the role of any non-State actor in the international legal sphere, including, but not limited to:

• The role of NGOs in the making, implementation and enforcement of international law;
• Business, particularly multinational corporations, as an increasingly important actor on the international scene;
• The influence of particular individuals on the development and implementation of international law;
• The 'media' and its engagement with, and influence on, international law; and
• The responsibilities of non-State armed groups and revolutionary organisations for violations of international law.

Contributions from early career researchers, academics from the Global South, and those working in non-traditional international law/research jobs are particularly encouraged.

Abstracts of no more than 300 words must be submitted by 31 May 2023, 1700hrs BST to biicl-sls-workshop@biicl.org The abstracts should be clearly connected to the workshop themes and provide the title of the proposed paper as well as the ideas, arguments or analyses to be presented.