The Sword and the Scales: The United States and International Courts and Tribunals

by Edited by Cesare P. R. Romano

• ISBN13: 9780521407465
• ISBN10: 052140746X
• eBook ISBN(s): 9780511630071
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-09-07
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

The Sword and the Scales is the first in-depth and comprehensive study of attitudes and behaviors of the United States toward major international courts and tribunals, including the International Courts of Justice, WTO, and NAFTA dispute settlement systems; the Inter-American Court of Human Rights; and all international criminal courts. Thirteen essays by American legal scholars map and analyze current and past patterns of promotion or opposition, use or neglect, of international judicial bodies by various branches of the United States government, suggesting a complex and deeply ambivalent relationship. The United States has been, and continues to be, not only a promoter of the various international courts and tribunals but also an active participant of the judicial system. It appears before some of the international judicial bodies frequently and supports more, both politically and financially. At the same time, it is less engaged than it could be, particularly given its strong rule of law foundations and its historical tradition of commitment to international law and its institutions.

Table of Contents

International courts and tribunals and the rule of law

American public opinion on international courts and tribunals

Arbitration and avoidance of war: the nineteenth century American vision

The United States and the International Court of Justice: coping with antinomies

The U.S. Supreme Court and the International Court of Justice: what does 'respectful consideration' mean?

U.S. attitudes toward international criminal courts and tribunals

The United States and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights Elizabeth

From paradox to subsidiarity: the United States and human rights treaty bodies

The U.S. and international claims and compensation bodies

Does the U.S. support international tribunals? The case of the multilateral trade system

The United States and dispute settlement under the North American Free Trade Agreement: ambivalence, frustration and occasional defiance

Dispute settlement under NAFTA Chapter 11: a response to the critics in the United States

The United States and international courts: getting the cost-benefit analysis right

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