Globalization and the Law

LAW 937

This course examines globalization and its effects upon international legal structures. The emergence of new forms of global law, which evolve and operate across traditional national boundaries, is a major aspect of the globalization process. Globalization has changed the nature of transnational legal institutions in both the public and private international law arena, and has led to new forms of transnational governance. Specific examples include such new legal institutions as the International Criminal Court (ICC), the World Trade Organization (WTO) and its dispute settlement system, and also varied hybrid or private international law regimes, such as the expanding field of technical standardization created by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the new governance structure of the Internet (ICANN). Private bodies such Multinational Enterprises and Non-Governmental Organizations are also playing a key role in the contemporary global arena and the course will examine their contribution against more traditional institutions. The course will begin with a general inquiry into the concept of globalization. It will then focus on various new and emerging forms of transnational governance, ranging from international human rights law, trade law and environmental law. Special attention will be given to the ways in which these diverse and seemingly separate aspects of international law interact with each other (e.g. the trade-environment debate, the involvement of NGOs and Multinational Enterprises in trade disputes). We will focus on the legal instruments which govern these diverse regimes and the international institutions that implement them. The course will also examine the impact of these new global regimes upon Israel and its laws.