Dialogue
Grotius Dialogue 'Beyond Bilateralism'
- Date
- Tuesday 19 November 2024
- Time
- Location
- Wijnhaven
Turfmarkt 99
2511 DP The Hague - Room
- 4.78
This timely book reimagines responsibility in international law, establishing the concept of non-bilateral responsibility as an objective legal situation generated by the commission of an internationally wrongful act. It examines the nature, operation and impact of this new form of responsibility, exploring its deep consequences for the legal system.
International law has traditionally been conceived of as a system of bilateral obligations between states, translating into bilateral relationships of responsibility. Under this model, responsibility is invoked (or waived) by injured states.But what happens when this model does not fit? What happens when there is no injured state, as is the case with innumerable environmental or human rights obligations? Or what if there is an injured state, but the interests involved go beyond the bilateral relationship between states, involving the interest of the international community as a whole? The bilateral model no longer accurately nor fully accounts for the legal consequences of breaches of nonbilateral obligations.
Beyond Bilateralism challenges this traditional approach by introducing the concept of nonbilateral responsibility in international law. It presents a new theory—the objective model—which sees responsibility not as a relationshipbetween states but as a legal situation arising from wrongful acts. This shift has profound implications for how we understand international law and state responsibility.
The introductory chapter is available here.