Q&A with Nicole Webster

The field of international law has progressed from what some had labeled as the nebulous, or even non-existent—and a narrowly understood branch of the law—to the far more tangible. The present lens view reveals an interactive arena including sources of international law and enforcement which present, in many instances, fairly effective, and evolving, arrangements worldwide. This level of the law primarily is based on consent, through treaties, international organizations, international courts and tribunals and other organs of international law and its implementation. Here within the United States legal system, we acknowledge, in numerous ways, aspects of international law and the application of those laws. Future goals include broader participation by the nations, to effect an international scenario with even greater capacity to handle legal controversies whose resolutions lie outside of nations‘ distinct legal orders. This potential is predicated upon, among many other things, comity, respect for cultures and, most particularly, the need to define and refine fora in which to resolve—as well as help prevent—disagreements that can arise through the vagaries and realities of today’s cross-border and global interaction.