How do we lose and save a constitutional democracy? How can democratic backsliding be prevented? What should we consider in designing a constitution? Can constitutions exist without constitutionalism? What is an authoritarian constitution? How do constitutions transitions and change occur? What forms of judicial review do courts employ? Is it possible to have an unconstitutional constitutional amendment? How do courts across the world interpret constitutions? Can constitutions be employed abusively?

Comparative constitutional law has exploded in contemporary constitutional practice and as a field of study. Events around the world—from Asia and the Middle East to Europe and Latin America—underscore the importance of understanding how constitutional democracies are born and how they can collapse. In this course, we will explore constitutions in global perspective, examining issues of constitutional structure and rights across comparative constitutional systems. We will cover topics like constitution-making, constitutional change, constitutional amendment, judicial review, and constitutional adjudication. Drawing on examples across the world, we will also examine individual rights issues, such as freedom of religion and freedom of expression, as well as constitutionalism in times of emergency and during the COVID-19 pandemic. We will also consider how constitutions can be abused and the question of whether and how constitutionalism might be able to endure in fragile democracies.

Comparative law involves the study of several global legal systems - including common law, civil law and religious law – with a goal of preparing students who may find their future careers require knowledge of more than one legal system. It may also be of interest to students who desire to examine the theoretical underpinnings of other countries’ laws and courts out of academic interest.  While the goal is to explore the application of comparative methodology to national and regional legal regimes, the focus will be on both the theoretical underpinnings of the comparative legal method and the historical development of the process for comparing rules, principles, and institutions of different countries. The course also emphasizes the current use of the comparative method in both public and private law by legal actors such as lawyers, judges, and legislators.  In the light of contemporary developments, the course will also provide students the international perspective to make substantive connections between the American common law and other legal traditions, and consider recent debates whether national legal systems and institutions are converging or whether differing economic, political, and social environments are leading to greater diversity and possibly even conflict.

This course surveys the legal system of the People’s Republic of China, using China as a vehicle for asking broader questions about law and legal comparison.   It is meant to be inviting to all students, including those with no background in China who wish to better understand the legal system of an increasingly important global power.   Topics will include: China’s traditional legal order and encounters with the West; the sources of law in contemporary China; courts and dispute resolution; the legal profession; the criminal justice system; selected topics in administrative law, constitutional law, economic law, environmental law, family law, international law, and labor law; China in transnational litigation; and the evolving use of digital technologies in Chinese law.  As with any course in comparative law, a key aim will be to deepen understanding of our own legal system through close and careful examination of another.

This course consists of an introduction to legal comparison with a focus on private law. The course is divided into two parts. The first part presents the functions and aims as well the methods of comparative law in general. After an overview of the legal systems in the world, the course analyses the civil law system in Europe and compares it with the common law system in the United States. It also shows how international and transnational laws address some of the differences between the two systems. While the course focuses on substantive law issues, in the fields of contract and tort, it also examines some structural issues -- such as the court systems, the education of lawyers and the role of judicial review. The second part of the course aims at providing an understanding of the ways in which EU law impacts the evolution of national law. Special attention is devoted to the link between private law and the Single Market, but also to the cultural and linguistic obstacles that come up in the process of harmonization of national laws in Europe. Overall, the course also aims at providing a practical introduction to issues of European law faced by American lawyers. Further it will show how legal comparison is a means for thinking about the law in broader terms.

This seminar provides an introduction to the increasingly important field of private international law as well as an opportunity to explore in depth specific issues now under active consideration in the various international and regional organizations working on the development, codification and harmonization of private international law. Beyond the “classic” PIL questions of jurisdiction, choice of law, judicial assistance and enforcement of judgments, we will explore such topics as international family law (including international adoption, abduction and enforcement of child support and family maintenance), alternative dispute settlement mechanisms (including international mediation and commercial and investment arbitration), as well as the cross-border aspects of such topics as data protection and privacy, bankruptcy/insolvency, secured transactions, securities law, intellectual property, transport of goods by sea, letters of credit, leasing law, consumer protection, and even wills and trusts. You may write your papers in any of these areas (among others).  All students will be expected to choose a topic to research, write and present to the class.

This course requires a paper and an oral presentation. It is open to J.D. and LL.M. students. For J.D. students who choose the 3 credit “writing seminar” option, the objective will be to research and write analytical papers of publishable quality on discrete topics of current importance in transnational practice. Students will be required to satisfy the WR requirement including (1) selection of a paper topic approved by the professor, (2) submission of an outline, followed by feedback from the professor, (3) submission of a draft paper of at least 6,000 words exclusive of footnotes, followed by feedback from the professor, and (4) submission of a final paper of at least 6,000 words exclusive of footnotes, incorporating the professor’s suggested revisions. The paper must use legal forms of citation, where appropriate.

Learning goals for this course:

Familiarity with substance of "Private International Law", where it is developed and how; understanding of the relationship between international and domestic law; ability to research effectively in the field; ability to write coherently and present conclusions orally. 

Students in this class will have an opportunity to study, comment on, and develop scholarship of their own regarding environmental law and policy. The class will include introductory materials and discussion about attributes and methods of environmental scholarship.  Then the workshop will introduce you to some of the best academic scholars in environmental law who will present a work-in-progress.  In both advance written comments and through workshop discussion, students will engage presenting scholars regarding their scholarship.  Depending on the presenters’ paper subjects and others’ availability, the workshop might also include a few classes with responsive comments from an outside visitor from government, not-for-profits, law firms, businesses, or legal academe.

Students can fulfill their Georgetown Law upper level writing requirement with an opportunity to produce substantial, publishable legal scholarship on a topic related to environmental, energy, or natural resource law, broadly defined, and receive three credits for their efforts.  All students will provide all speakers and the professor with at least brief (no more than one page) of advance comments and questions.  Two credit students will provide more in-depth comments to three speakers and the professor, with such comments expected to be five pages in length and reflect careful reading of both the paper and, as necessary to provide knowledgeable comments, draw on selective delving into other scholarly or primary materials relevant to, or referenced in, the presented paper.  Our last session together will include a bit of debriefing, but will mainly be a session for three credit students to present their drafts and receive comments.

This seminar will examine the development of antitrust law around the world, starting with a basic understanding of U.S. and EC competition principles and then reviewing the application of those principles around the world (in particular China), as applied to current issues such as the regulation of Big Tech and progressive challenges to the status quo in the United States. Particular emphasis will be on merger control and regulation of dominant firm conduct (monopolization/abuse of dominant position). We will also consider the role of competition policy in economic and political development generally. Grading will be based on a paper and an assessment of class participation.

This seminar will examine the development of competition laws around the world, differences in substantive standards among the major enforcement jurisdictions; the role of historical, political, and economic forces that affect those differences; and the possible consequences of those differences. We will start with a basic understanding of competition principles common to key jurisdictions including the U.S., Canada, the EC, the UK, and Japan, and will compare and contrast these with the principles applied in developing and transition economies, such as China, Mexico, India, and South Africa. Particular emphasis will be on current issues and trends including the role of antitrust in a digital economy, multi-jurisdictional merger control, and regulation of dominant firm conduct. We will also consider the role of competition policy in economic and political development generally.

In this intensive course, students will work with faculty and fellows at the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law to gain an in­depth understanding of global health law through intensive examination and role play of one or more major problems in global health. Potential problems could include a naturally occurring infectious disease epidemic such as extensively drug resistant tuberculosis; a future epidemic such as pandemic Influenza (A) H5N; an intentional introduction of a lethal pathogen such as anthrax; and/or major chronic diseases caused by obesity or tobacco use. Students should come to this course with a basic level of understanding of global health law, including the major international health treaties and governing structures. When studying and role playing these kinds of problems, students will be asked to construct innovative methods of global health governance, drawing upon existing international health law and institutions, along with a vision for more ideal models. 

Full attendance and participation is required at all sessions. Class sessions will consist of a combination of lecture, case simulations, and discussion. Grades are based on student participation, a daily journal to be kept by students, and a final paper.

A backlash against globalization has emerged in advanced economies as a result of job loss, wage stagnation, precarious work and economic insecurity for the middle class. The liberal globalization of the last three decades is under attack for the unequal distribution of its gains and its failure to provide better opportunities for ordinary working people. Reimagining the global economy will require placing work front and center. This seminar will explore the changing nature of the workplace due to global competition and technological change. It will examine important policy debates about how best to create jobs, improve working conditions, and promote economic growth and well-being. We will analyze how a variety of factors, such as new modes of production and technologies, increasing participation of women in the economy, widespread migration flows, increasing global trade and capital mobility, and the rise of informal economies challenge the assumptions underlying traditional labor and employment regulation in both developed and developing countries. We will consider an array of innovative attempts – national, international, transnational, public, private and mixed -- to improve workplace conditions and assure employment opportunity consistent with economic growth and stability. We will also inquire about the moral and political commitments associated with various approaches.
There are no prerequisites. All students are welcome.

Internationally the United Nations recognizes indigenous peoples and their special rights associated with identity and culture. Many countries have formal systems intended to support indigenous peoples with instruments of law, policy, and custom. This course will examine those international instruments, treaties, court cases, and Congressional acts to explore what it means for the Right to Health to exist, the ways that right is recognized among indigenous peoples, and major shortfalls in achieving equity through these paths. American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) experience serious health disparities in key morbidity/mortality indicators. AIANs are also a bell-weather subgroup in the US for unusual disease such as bubonic plague or the rapid dissemination of novel infectious disease such as happened among tribes in the covid-19 pandemic. In addition to risk and vulnerability that contribute to health disparities, sovereign nation status of the 573 federally recognized tribes in the US and the Indian Health Service that serves them are particular structures shown to mitigate despair and promote future well-being in remarkably difficult circumstances. There are unique laws, operations, and tensions that undergird these structures. Recent actions to strengthen treaty obligations and extend equity movements to indigenous peoples are gathering energy to address health and justice disparities.

This course focuses on the laws and systems foundational to access to care and health services for Indigenous peoples in the US. The course will include discussions on self-determination, sovereignty, funding, social determinants of health, inter-generational trauma and additional elements of Indigenous health law in the US and compare these to other Indigenous health systems particularly those in Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The course is designed to provide practical skills for students interested in health equity and justice,  Indigenous access to care, Indigenous health law, and policy implementation. The course illuminates, in particular, outcomes of shared American history and distinctive obligations, systems, and opportunities to address ethnic disparities.

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Identify and interpret relevant authorities and limitations that underpin Indigenous access to health care
• Identify and understand specific regulations, guidance, and laws applicable to providing health care to US tribal governments
• Gain knowledge on the right to self-determination
• Master vocabulary and terminology associated with Indigenous rights and health law
• Understand the linkage of national health systems to the United Nations including the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues; and UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
• Compare and analyze legal instruments and structures from other countries, including New Zealand, Australia, and Canada with the United States

In many parts of the world, women are discriminated against, abused, treated as property, and even murdered because they are women. But today, there is a substantial body of international and regional human rights law that can be used to change the national laws that permit these practices or fail to protect women against them. In addition, many countries have begun to give women equal rights in many fields. Thus, there is now a body of human rights and comparative law that advocates can use to advance equal human rights for women.

This course provides students with an overview of that law. It introduces them to the many forms of discrimination and violence women still face and teaches them about the major human rights treaties that can help women achieve equality with men. These include the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women; the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; and the regional human rights treaties from Africa, the Americas, and Europe. Students study the work of the human rights bodies that measure state compliance with these treaties, including their guidelines and case law on issues affecting women. The course also examines comparative law on human rights issues such as sex-based discrimination in employment, inheritance, and family law rights, domestic violence and female genital mutilation, polygamy and its impact on women and children, and women’s lack of reproductive rights.

National court decisions from countries in both common law and civil law jurisdictions show how courts are using international and regional human rights law to help resolve domestic law issues. As some issues pose difficult conflicts between women’s right to equality with opposing assertions of religious and cultural rights to discriminate, the course also examines how human rights bodies resolve those conflicts and asks how they should be resolved.

This course aims to familiarize students with international commercial arbitration and will follow the traditional steps of international arbitration proceedings from the registration of the dispute to enforcement and challenges of an award in national courts.  This course will not rely solely on US law but, instead, adopt a global approach to international arbitration. 

The subject of investor-state disputes and their resolution lies at the cutting edge of international law, and is a major factor in the development of the global economic system in years to come. Study of this form of arbitration provides insight into the evolving shape of customary international law, the conflict between capital-importing and capital-exporting states, and the status of individuals in the international legal order. This seminar will provide students with a firm grounding in the history, present practice, and future implications of arbitration between foreign investors and host states, sanctioned by multilateral and bilateral investment treaties. Topics that will be covered in this course are the history of the treatment of aliens and investments under international law; an overview of the most important international treaties that give investors a right to arbitration of claims; the most important elements of procedure that characterize investor-state arbitration, including tribunal composition, jurisdiction, evidence, award and challenge or annulment; substantive law of investment arbitration, the standards that apply when a tribunal determines whether a breach of the treaty has occurred; and the future development of investor-state arbitration including the challenges of globalization and other stresses, the clash of capital-importing and capital-exporting countries, environmental protection and free trade, restrictions on state sovereignty, the construction of an international investment jurisprudence, the limits on arbitrability, and the expansion of multilateral investment protections worldwide. Active participation in discussion of the course materials is required.

The aim of this course is to introduce the students to the ways in which liberal constitutionalism deals with the fact of difference (religious, ethnic, or national). After general theoretical introduction to various issues (such as law, culture and difference, politics of recognition and politics of redistribution, the risks of politics of identity, the liberal and feminist critiques of multicultural politics, the analytical problem of group rights), the course will survey the ways that liberal democracies deal with the claims of several groups within society to be different. We will read cases and materials from the United States, Canada, France, Israel, India, and Germany.

In this interdisciplinary colloquium, leading national and international scholars in a range of domains will explore fundamental normative and policy problems of contemporary concern in health law. Topics will include health care, public health, global health, science, regulation, politics, ethics, and policy. The colloquium will have participants from across the Georgetown University campus among faculty, senior administration, and students, as well as participants in the Washington health policy and legislative community.

Each seminar session will focus on a presentation by, or structured dialogue with, distinguished guest speakers. Students from the Law Center and other schools within Georgetown University (including Nursing and Health Studies, Medicine, Arts and Sciences, Foreign Service, Business, and other graduate programs) will be expected to prepare for intensive discussions in which experts, faculty and students explore, analyze and deepen their understanding of issues selected for consideration each month. The colloquia will be open to other students and faculty members across Georgetown University as well as interested members of the public, particularly professionals working in health law and policy in Washington.

This seminar is about the phenomena of national and cultural identity formation within states and non-state groups (ethnic, racial, regional, religious, cultural, tribal) and the roles played by law and culture in defining and distributing membership in a collective or “national” community. The course material will provide a foundation in political theories of nationalism and will focus on two different forms of contemporary nationalism: the rise of a new American and predominantly white nationalism (since the 2016 election) and a non-US example of a sovereignty or self-determination movement (such as the Catalan independence movement in Spain). Along the way we will discuss additional and alternative forms of belonging and exclusion, such as monuments and memory, statelessness and diaspora, and postcolonial and cosmopolitan forms of citizenship. This interdisciplinary and comparative seminar is geared toward better understanding how law and culture are used to divide and unify diverse populations, and exploring how democratic, heterogeneous states and communities might find common purpose.

All constitutions around the world deal with religion. Some constitutional systems are theocratic, some accommodate religion, while yet others advocate neutrality toward religious institutions or call for a strict separation between religion and the state. This course examines core questions regarding how religion and law interact in constitutional systems globally. We will explore the role of religion and the state drawn from comparative contexts including Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. We will evaluate the challenges faced by the different models of the relationship between the state and the church (or mosque) in our modern world. To what extent is liberal constitutionalism consistent with constitutional designs that privilege a particular religion? Should religion or secularism ever be placed beyond constitutional change, like through constitutional eternity clauses?

We will also consider the individual right of religious freedom and the scope of its protection globally. What counts as “religion” and religious freedom? Who is better placed to make these determinations—the courts, legislature, executive, or the people? We will discuss controversies relating to these questions, such as apostasy, religious conversion, religious symbols, and bans on religious dress like headscarves and burkinis. This course will also explore contemporary issues relating to religion and gender, multiculturalism, religious arbitration, and conscience claims.

Whether they are representing couples in transnational adoptions or multinational enterprises in cross-border mergers, legal practitioners increasingly are expected to consult international and foreign legal materials. This course will familiarize students with the best tools for researching international law and the domestic law of jurisdictions outside the U.S., enabling them to approach these tasks with confidence, rather than trepidation. Students will learn how to efficiently locate multilateral and bilateral treaties, decisions issued by international tribunals, documentation produced by the United Nations and other international organizations, as well as legislation and case law from selected foreign jurisdictions, including the European Union. Tools for topical research in specialized fields, such as human rights, international trade, and investor-state arbitration, also will be covered. Students will refine their information-gathering skills through a series of in-class research exercises and take-home quizzes based on real world, practice-oriented scenarios. This course will be especially beneficial for journal editors, students participating in the Jessup International Moot Court competition and other international competitions, and for students interested in pursuing careers in international law or in practicing law outside their home jurisdiction.

Roman law developed over the course of more than one thousand years, and it  continues to influence contemporary legal systems throughout the world. In this  course, we will examine the portions of Roman private law that correspond to the  Anglo-American law of family, property, and wills and estates. Readings will consist of  excerpts (in translation) from Roman legal sources, principally Justinian’s Digest. No  background knowledge of Roman law or of Roman history is required.

This course will explore the political economy, governance, and legal regulation of global technology platform giants. After providing an introduction to the structure and operation of technology platforms, it will consider case studies from different parts of the globe that spotlight a range of current legal and policy problems, including, among others: content governance (including both content removal and content provision); privacy and data protection; internet access and digital inclusion; competition, consumer protection, and worker protection issues created by and within platform ecosystems; and platform entanglements with geopolitical and state security concerns.

This course investigates the federal courts’ role in United States foreign affairs. It is a commonplace that the courts take a backseat to the political branches on issues relating to foreign affairs. But that truism, though generally accurate, obscures more than it reveals, for the federal courts routinely adjudicate cases with significant implications for the United States’ relations with the world—as they have since 1789. In this course, we will explore several fundamental questions: What kinds of foreign affair issues have the courts historically addressed? How has the courts’ jurisdiction over cases implicating foreign affairs changed over time? How have the courts handled foreign and international law? What impact have separation of powers principles had on the courts’ decision-making?

The course is organized thematically; in each two- or three-week unit we will focus on a particular issue, including the foreign affairs background to the establishment of federal courts under Article III of the Constitution; the status of international and foreign law in federal court; foreign states as litigants in federal court; and the reach of the courts’ jurisdiction beyond U.S. territory. Each unit will be framed in historical perspective, exploring both the courts’ past practice and their modern approach.

This is not a survey course on the law of U.S. foreign affairs; we will not address directly many of the topics that would be covered in such a course—including the allocation of foreign affairs responsibility between the Executive and Congress; the scope of Presidential war power; and treaty-making and executive agreements. Instead, the focus here is squarely on the courts and their interactions with the world.

By the end of the semester, students should be able to do the following:
• Demonstrate a general understanding of the various ways in which the federal courts address issues that have implications for the United States’ relations with foreign nations.
• Recognize how the courts’ role in foreign affairs has changed over time, and understand what has driven those changes.
• Draw connections between different doctrinal areas and historical periods to develop a broader understanding of the court’s role in foreign affairs.
• Critically assess legal and historical scholarship on the courts’ role in foreign affairs.
• Respond constructively to classmates’ questions, comments, and ideas.

This course will provide an overview of the international and domestic legal and policy frameworks relating to Global Health. It will explore the critical tools used by the international community and donor governments to respond to the COVID crisis. Using the International Health Regulations, Sustainable Development Goals 2030, WTO Doha Declaration, COVAX Agreements, and International and Regional Human Rights Treaties we will provide a foundation of policy deployment at the international level. Against this backdrop we will focus on the challenges and the tension of international organizations to operate in crises and the sovereignty of the country members resulting in a hardening of nationalism and making their citizens a top priority. Cross-border challenges and threats had been a concern before COVID-19; climate change, fragility and conflict, migration and infectious disease are all increasing in frequency. We will address and examine how these tensions impacted the COVID crisis and other global health emergencies.   

The course is designed to impart practical skills for students interested in exploring careers focused on these international issues/global health in government, nongovernmental organizations or the private sector, providing a complementary perspective to Preventing, Detecting and Responding to Global Health: The International Health Regulations and the U.S. Government Interagency Process from the international perspective.

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Identify and interpret the key relevant authorities and limitations that underpin the global response to the COVID crisis and other global health emergencies in the international community. 
• Identify and interpret the key regulations, guidance, and other laws applicable to providing COVID response as well as broader global health assistance by the countries at the national level.
• Draw lessons learned from the international and country-level response to the COVID crisis.
• Predict and explain policy decisions based on knowledge of areas of international organization, donor governments and private actors discretion and restrictions.
• Critically analyze the application of the international global health infrastructure, the IHR and Global Health Security Agenda to COVID and other real life scenarios.
• Identify and recommend changes to the international legal framework for global health to respond more efficiently and effectively to the next global health crisis.
• Differentiate between ideals and goals that are achievable under the relevant legal and regulatory frameworks from activities that are restricted, restrained or prohibited.

In our increasingly globalized world, litigation frequently transcends state or national borders.  Transnational litigation implicates the three main topics addressed by the field of Conflict of Laws (also known as Private International Law):  Jurisdiction/choice of forum; choice of law; and enforcement of foreign judgments.  This course focuses on how U.S. courts resolve these issues (although some attention will be paid to how other countries address them).  Special attention will be devoted to the extraterritorial application of US law and to conflict of laws issues that arise in transnational litigation involving Business & Human Rights. 

The law of work is an increasingly important aspect of the global economy. Knowledge of this subject is useful in representing companies, unions, employees, governments and non-governmental organizations. Themes developed in the course also are central to understanding the relationship between law and globalization more broadly. We will study hard and soft law in the various forms in which it operates trans-nationally, including domestic law with foreign effects; public and private international law, such as human rights and trade law; and private codes of corporate social responsibility. The International Labor Organization (ILO), which is a touchstone in the course, is an especially interesting institutional case study: It is the world’s oldest international organization, with 180 member countries giving it near-universal representativeness, and its inclusion of governing roles for civil society groups – unions and employer associations – makes it unique among international institutions. Attention will be given to subordination of documented and undocumented migrants, women, and child laborers.