GGSS

Bon voyage to students taking part in Georgia Law summer 2025 global initiatives

In summer 2025, the highest number of students in the past 10 years will travel abroad to participate in two global practice preparation offerings administered by the University of Georgia School of Law’s Dean Rusk International Law Center:

Global Governance Summer School

This year’s Global Governance Summer School will focus on comparative constitutional law. It is set to begin later this month, when students will travel to two cities in Belgium for a week of site visits and lectures led by Georgia Law’s Matthew I. Hall, Associate Professor of Law, as well as professors from partner university KU Leuven. The first week of this for-credit course also will include professional development briefings at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Parliament, the European Commission, the European Economic and Social Committee, private law firms, and NGOs.

Then, programming shifts to The Hague, Netherlands, where Hall will lead briefings at the International Criminal Court, the International Court of Justice, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, and the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals. Center director Sarah Quinn and Global Practice Preparation Assistant Catrina Martin will provide logistical assistance throughout the program on the ground and in Athens, respectively.

A total of twenty students will participate in this year’s summer school, including:

Global Externships Overseas

Our Center’s Global Externship Overseas initiative, overseen by Center Associate Director Taher Benany, offers Georgia Law students the opportunity to gain practical work experience in a variety of legal settings around the world. This summer, nine students have opted to combine the GEO opportunity with their participation in GGSS: Nicholas Ames, Olivia Buckner, Isaac Clement, Megan Greeley, Stephanie Holterman, Laiba Noor, Jalyn Ross, Lionel Rubio, and Camille Weindorf.

A total of twenty-four Georgia Law students will pursue GEOs in practice areas such as privacy and technology law, environmental law, international arbitration, EU competition, cultural heritage and historic preservation, intellectual property, corporate law, and human rights law.

This year’s GEO class includes eighteen private-sector placements:

  • Annie Bordeaux (J.D. ’27) – MVKini; Mumbai, India
  • Meghan Brockman (J.D. ’27) – GreenCo SA; Buenos Aires, Argentina
  • Olivia Buckner (J.D. ’27) – Van Bael & Bellis; Brussels, Belgium
  • Nida Choudary (J.D. ’27) – Roudane & Partners Law Firm; Casablanca, Morocco
  • Carsen Christy (J.D. ’26) – Gleiss Lutz; Stuttgart, Germany
  • Isaac Clement (J.D. ’27) – PSA Legal; New Delhi, India
  • Margaret Farinella (J.D. ’27) – Bruchou & Funes; Buenos Aires, Argentina
  • Megan Greeley (J.D. ’26) – Bodenheimer; Cologne, Germany
  • Stephanie Holterman (J.D. ’27) – Honlet Legum Arbitration; Paris, France
  • Laiba Noor (J.D. ’27) – Gatti Pavesi Bianchi Ludovici; Milan, Italy
  • Franklin Phan (J.D. ’27) – KPMG; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Kara Reed (J.D. ’26) – Kuribayashi Sogo Law Office; Tokyo, Japan
  • Bailey Renfroe (J.D. ’26) – Alston & Bird; Brussels, Belgium
  • Jalyn Ross (J.D. ’27) – Bodenheimer; Cologne, Germany
  • Lionel Rubio (J.D. ’27) – Araoz y Rueda; Madrid, Spain
  • Casey Smith (J.D. ’26) – Berggren; Helsinki, Finland
  • Hope Thomas (J.D. ’27) – LNT & Partners; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
  • Camille Weindorf (J.D. ’27) – Deloitte; Baku, Azerbaijan

These six students will work for public sector placements:

  • Nicholas Ames (J.D. ’27) – The International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law; Valetta, Malta
  • Kellianne Elliott (J.D. ’26) – The Department of Conservation; Wellington, New Zealand
  • Amelia England (J.D. ’26) – eLiberare; Brasov, Romania
  • Olivia Haas (J.D. ’27) – The Department of Conservation; Wellington, New Zealand
  • Abigail Hagood (J.D. ’27) – The Antiquities Coalition; Washington, D.C.
  • Emma Hopkins (J.D. ’27) – No Peace Without Justice; Brussels, Belgium

More information on both of these Georgia Law initiatives here.

Applications now open for UGA Law’s summer 2024 Global Governance Summer School

Applications are now open for the summer 2024 Global Governance Summer School, jointly presented by the University of Georgia School of Law’s Dean Rusk International Law Center and KU Leuven’s Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies. Each summer, this short-term study abroad takes UGA Law students to Belgium and the Netherlands to explore global governance: the interaction of state, regional, and international legal regimes, plus individuals, corporations, intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations, networks, and other non-state actors.

In summer 2023, the first summer GGSS ran since 2019, 17 students traveled to Europe for a week of lectures with KU Leuven professors. The first week of this for-credit course also included professional development briefings in Brussels at the European Parliament, where students were able to watch the final vote of the session cast, and a private law firm specializing in EU competition law. The programming then shifted to The Hague, Netherlands, where students received briefings at the International Criminal Court, the International Court of Justice, the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, and Leiden University.

The students in attendance had a variety of professional and academic motivations for participating in GGSS. For some, the professional connections, international experience, and expanded academic network will continue to benefit them as they pursue employment internationally. Erin Nalley, a current 2L who aims to work in international environmental law, stated how important the experiences of GGSS are for someone interested in an international career:

“The cultural, academic, and international experiences on this program were priceless and once in a lifetime. I made new friendships and professional connections on this trip that I most likely would not have made without GGSS.”

For others focusing their professional pursuits domestically, GGSS served as a unique professional development opportunity that will set them apart in their job search. Megan Jones, a current 2L interested in a business law career, reflected on the value of the knowledge she gained through her participation in GGSS:

“GGSS was a great opportunity for someone who sees themselves practicing domestically early in their legal career but still has an interest or desire to incorporate international aspects into their professional future. They say the best way to learn something is to immerse yourself in it, and that is exactly what GGSS is: an immersive experience that introduces you to the wide array of global opportunities the legal field has to offer.“

In addition to the UGA Law students, several graduate students at UGA in the law school’s Graduate Certificate in International Law participated in GGSS. Jasmine Underwood-Starling, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Sociology, noted that the benefits of GGSS are truly interdisciplinary:

“For any student interested in international, foreign, and comparative law, the GGSS is definitely worthwhile. The ability to go from classroom learning to then seeing the knowledge and practices in action the very next day is an invaluable experience. The program was truly inspiring.”

***

Applications for the summer 2024 Global Governance Summer School are now open. Current 1Ls, 2Ls, and graduate students are encouraged to apply. This 12-day, 3-credit summer school will explore global governance through the lens of comparative administrative law led by Kent Barnett, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs & J. Alton Hosch Professor of Law. GGSS will take place from May 20 – June 1, 2024. Students are encouraged to reference this instructional video for step-by-step information regarding how to create and successfully complete an application for GGSS in UGA’s Study Away Portal by the March 1 deadline. For more information, please plan to attend the Center’s International Opportunities Information Session on Tuesday, February 13 at 12pm, or email: ruskintlaw@uga.edu

Bon voyage to students taking part in Georgia Law global summer initiatives

In the weeks ahead, more than two dozen students will travel to participate in two global practice preparation offerings administered by the University of Georgia School of Law Dean Rusk International Law Center. These are the:

GGSS

This year’s Global Governance Summer School will focus on economic and human rights. It’s set to begin at the end this month, when students will travel to Belgium for a week of lectures led by Georgia Law Professor Zohra Ahmed as well as Leuven professors. The first week of this for-credit course also will include professional development briefings at the European Parliament, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and a private law firm.

Then programming shifts to The Hague, Netherlands, where Professor Melissa J. “MJ” Durkee, the Center’s Director, Associate Dean for International Programs, and Allen Post Professor at Georgia Law, will lead briefings at the International Criminal Court, the International Court of Justice, the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, and Leiden University. Casey Graham, Sarah Quinn, and Catrina Martin will provide logistical assistance during the program. (Above, many in the group gather for a predeparture photo.)

Seventeen Georgia Law students will take part: Andrew Arrington, Hao Chen “Bobby” Dong, and Marly “Jansen” Killian, Allison Reid, all rising 3Ls; Mona Abboud, Madison Graham, Megan Jones, Anna “Carolina” Mares, Erin Nalley, Caden Pruitt, Hannah Silvers, Tiffany Torchia, Daniel “Tripp” Vaughn, all rising 2Ls; and Alma Bajramovic, Thomas Kingsley, Angela Mossgrove, Jasmine Underwood, all pursuing Graduate Certificates in International Law.

GEO

Our Center’s Global Externship Overseas initiative places Georgia Law students in externships lasting between four and twelve weeks. It thus offers students the opportunity to gain practical work experience in a variety of legal settings worldwide. Some students opt to combine the GEO opportunity with participation in GGSS.

This summer, fifteen Georgia Law students are set to pursue Global Externships Overseas, in practice areas such as privacy and technology law, international environmental law, intellectual property law, European Union competition and trade law, international arbitration, corporate law, and human rights law.

Private-sector placements among rising 3Ls include: Caroline Bailey, GreenCo S.A., Buenos Aires, Argentina; Hao Chen “Bobby” Dong, Baker Tilly, Hamburg and Frankfurt, Germany; Matthew Philips, PSA Legal, New Delhi, India; Benjamin Siegel, Soreinen, Tallinn, Estonia. Among rising 2Ls, private-sector placements include: Mona Abboud, Alston & Bird, Brussels, Belgium; Madison Graham, Van Bael & Bellis, Brussels, Belgium; Sierra Hamilton, Weickmann & Weickmann, Munich, Germany; Anna “Carolina” Mares, Houerbi Law Firm, Tunis, Tunisia; Matthew McKaig, GÖRG, Berlin, Germany; Caden Pruitt, Bodenheimer, Cologne, Germany; Daniel “Tripp” Vaughn, Deloitte, Baku, Azerbaijan.

Public-sector placements include: rising 3L Allison Reid, Eliberare, Brasov, Romania; and rising 2Ls Jasmine Furin, Office of the Privacy Commissioner, Hamilton, Bermuda; Bryonna Howard, No Peace Without Justice, Brussels, Belgium; and Erin Nalley, New Zealand Department of Conservation, Wellington, New Zealand.

More information on both of these Georgia Law initiatives here.

KU Leuven Professor Jan Wouters to speak on “European Union as Global Actor” this Thursday at Georgia Law

Professor Jan Wouters, international law scholar and Director of the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies at Belgium’s KU Leuven, will give a lecture entitled “The European Union as a Global Actor: Potential and Challenges” at 1 p.m. this Thursday, January 26, in the Sanders Boardroom at the University of Georgia School of Law.

Academic partners since 2015, the Leuven Centre and Georgia Law’s Dean Rusk International Law Center co-present a Global Governance Summer School, among other collaborations. (prior posts)

Wouters is Full Professor of International Law and International Organizations, Jean Monnet Chair ad personam EU and Global Governance, and founding Director of the Institute for International Law at the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies, an interdisciplinary research unit that holds the status within its university of both a Jean Monnet and KU Leuven Centre of Excellence. Additionally, Wouters is a visiting professor at Sciences Po and Paris-2 (Panthéon-Assas) in France, LUISS University in Italy, and the College of Europe in Belgium, as well as an adjunct professor of EU and human rights law Columbia University in New York. His most recent publications, all of them 2022 volumes which he co-edited, are: EU Industrial Policy in the Multipolar Economy; The G20, Development and the UN 2030 Agenda; Research Handbook on Global Governance, Business and Human Rights; and The Nexus Between Organized Crime and Terrorism.

Event details here.

Scholarly achievements, vibrant initiatives highlighted in newsletter of Dean Rusk International Law Center, University of Georgia School of Law

For a recap of the year’s research and global practice accomplishments, have a look at the newly published newsletter of the Dean Rusk International Law Center at the University of Georgia School of Law. Features include:

► Scholarly achievements of our Center Director, Melissa J. Durkee, and our many other globally minded faculty, including Diane Marie Amann and Harlan G. Cohen, our Center’s Faculty Co-Directors, as well as Zohra Ahmed, Christopher Bruner, Jason Cade, Nathan Chapman, Walter Hellerstein, Thomas Kadri, Jonathan Peters, Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge, Tim Samples, and Laura Phillips-Sawyer.

► The exceptional performance of the Georgia Law students who competed in the 2022 Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, placing second in the United States, competing through octofinals internationally, and tying for best overall oralist through the International Advanced Rounds.

► Our International Law Colloquium in Spring 2022, a course featuring works-in-progress conversations with international law scholars based in Latin America and Europe as well as the United States.

► Recent events, including our day-long conference on “The Law of Global Economic Statecraft” cosponsored with the Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law and other University of Georgia entities, our Consular Series of talks with diplomats, presentations by distinguished lawyers on issues including the Ukraine-Russia war, and participation in panels at meetings of the American Branch of the International Law Association, the American Society of International Law, and other global entities.

► Initiatives aimed at preparing our J.D. and LL.M. students for global legal practice, including our NATO Externship, our Global Externships, and the Global Governance Summer School we host in partnership with the Leuven Centre for Global Governance at Belgium’s University of Leuven (plus additional partnerships with O.P. Jindal University in India and Bar Ilan University in Israel).

The full newsletter is here.

Judge Joan Donoghue, Sibley Lecturer at Georgia Law, elected President of International Court of Justice

The Honorable Joan E. Donoghue, the American judge on the International Court of Justice, today was elected President of the International Court of Justice, the Hague-based institution known colloquially as the World Court.

She is the 3d American to serve a term as President, following Green H. Hackworth (1955-58) and Stephen M. Schwebel (1997-2000), and also the 2d woman, following Dame Rosalyn Higgins of the United Kingdom (2006-09).

We at the University of Georgia School of Law Dean Rusk International Law Center are pleased to welcome this news, not least because of Judge Donoghue’s generosity over the years toward our law school community:

  • In April 2012, a little more than a year before her initial election to the ICJ, Donoghue visited Georgia Law’s Athens campus to deliver our 108th Sibley Lecture. Her talk, entitled “The Role of the World Court Today,” (video) outlined the court’s history as the judicial organ of the United Nations, as well as the nature and evolution of its jurisdiction over disputes between nation-states and certain advisory matters. The text was published at 47 Georgia Law Review 181 (2012).
  • On occasions thereafter, as part of our Global Governance Summer School, the judge and her staff kindly hosted our students as they received a tour of the court’s seat, the Peace Palace, as well as a briefing on the court’s work.

As explained at the ICJ website:

“The President presides at all meetings of the Court; he/she directs its work and supervises its administration, with the assistance of a Budgetary and Administrative Committee and various other committees, all composed of Members of the Court. During judicial deliberations, the President has a casting vote in the event of votes being equally tied.”

Before joining the ICJ, Donoghue was Principal Deputy Legal Adviser in the U.S. Department of State, a position in which her duties included advising the Secretary of State and other officials on all aspects of international law. She’d practiced at State since 1984, with a few breaks to serve as Deputy General Counsel for the U.S. Department of the Treasury and General Counsel for Freddie Mac. She holds bachelor’s and law degrees from the Santa Cruz and Berkeley campuses, respectively, of the University of California.

Having been elected President by a vote of her peers on the court, Judge Donoghue will serve a 3-year term – as will her colleague who was elected Vice-President, Judge Kirill Gevorgian of the Russian Federation.

Scholarly achievements, thriving initiatives featured in newsletter of Dean Rusk International Law Center

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For a recap of the year’s global law-and-practice accomplishments here at the University of Georgia School of Law, have a look at the just-published annual newsletter of the Dean Rusk International Law Center. Features include:

► Celebrating the scholarly achievements of our many other globally minded faculty and staff, including Diane Marie Amann, Christopher Bruner, Thomas V. Burch, Anne Burnett, Jason A. Cade, Nathan S. Chapman, Harlan G. Cohen, Kathleen A. Doty, Melissa J. Durkee, Walter Hellerstein, Lori Ringhand, Usha Rodrigues, and Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge.

► Events past and future, including day-long conferences cosponsored with the Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law, public lectures and our Consular Series of lunch talks with Atlanta-based diplomats, cosponsorship of panels at regional and national international law meetings, and the upcoming International Law Colloquium Series.

► Initiatives aimed at preparing our J.D. and LL.M. students for global legal practice, including our Global Externships and our Global Governance Summer School, plus support for students’ organizations and international advocacy teams.

The full newsletter is here.

Student Caroline Harvey wins cultural heritage writing competition

Caroline HarveyCaroline Harvey, a current third-year student at the University of Georgia School of Law, is one of two 2019 winners of the Lawyer’s Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation Law Student Writing Competition in Cultural Heritage Law.

Harvey’s paper, “An Avenue for Fairness: Disclosure-Based Compensation Schemes for Good Faith Purchasers of Stolen Art,” argues that in art replevin actions, courts should take an additional step in their due diligence analyses and consider whether a good faith possessor of stolen artwork should be entitled to compensation after forfeiting artwork to the true owner. This, she argues, would “more fairly balance the equities between the parties and avoid total loss to the good faith purchaser.”

Harvey currently serves as the Executive Notes Editor for the Georgia Law Review. After her first year, she participated in the Global Governance Summer School, and she completed a Global Externship At-Home at the Antiquities Coalition in Washington, D.C.  Last summer, she worked for Norris Legal Atlanta Law Group. She holds a B.A. in Art History from the University of Georgia, and hopes to practice in the areas of cultural heritage and art law.

2019 Global Governance Summer School concludes with briefings at the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court

THE HAGUE – On this final day of the 2019 Global Governance Summer School, students visited two preeminent international tribunals — the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court — for high level briefings. They were also treated to a visit from Dr. Kaitlin Ball (JD ’14), a Georgia Law alumna who recently finished a PhD at Cambridge and is living in Europe.

The group started the day at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for an audience with Hendrik Denys, law clerk to the Honorable Joan Donoghue, the American judge on the International Court of Justice. Mr. Denys, an alumnus of our partner school, KU Leuven, spoke with students about the history of the Peace Palace, the structure and procedure of the Court, and several representative decisions of the ICJ’s jurisprudence. He also provided advice for preparing a career in international law.

In the afternoon, the group visited the International Criminal Court (ICC), located on the dunes near The Hague’s North Sea coast. Student first had a meeting with Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, for whom our summer school’s co-director, Georgia Law Professor Diane Marie Amann, serves as Special Adviser on Children in & affected by Armed Conflict. Bensouda described her own path to practicing international criminal law. While acknowledging the barriers to achieving justice, she expressed the urgency of continuing the effort, on behalf of global society as well as the victims of international crimes.

The second audience at the ICC was with the Honorable Kimberly Prost of Canada, who serves as a Judge in the Trial Division. Judge Prost discussed the history of the Court and the many of the challenges facing it. She also emphasized the important concept of complementarity in regards to the ICC’s relationship to national courts.

Students also had the opportunity to view the confirmation of charges against Al Hassan, who is suspected of war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in 2012 and 2013 in Timbuktu, Mali. During the portion of the hearing that time permitted the group to observe, students heard from one of the Legal Representatives of the Victims, who emphasized the impact of the alleged crimes.

All in all, it was a great day, a successful trip, and we look forward to returning next year!

Global Governance Summer School students attend RECONNECT conference on democracy and the rule of law in the European Union

LEUVEN & BRUSSELS – The morning opened with an introduction to the European Union, presented by Michal Ovadek, a research fellow at the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies. An expert in the European Union legislative process, he provided an overview of the European Union architecture, and outlined the primary challenges to democracy in Europe. The session was designed to prepare students to participate fully in the rest of the day’s activities: a conference devoted to a research project aimed at reinvigorating core values of the European Union.

From left, Gamble Baffert, Charles Wells, Leila Knox, Emily Doumar, Maria Lagares Romay, Blanca Ruiz Llevot, Steven Miller, Alicia Millspaugh, and Briana Blakely.

The RECONNECT: Reconciling Europe with its Citizens through Democracy and the Rule of Law project, established by the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies, is supported by funds from the EU’s Horizon 2020 Research & Innovation programme. As part of the larger project, the Leven Centre convened the International Conference on Democracy and the Rule of Law in the EU. It gathered experts to discuss contemporary challenges to European Union integration, including judicial independence and rule of law, free press, and democratic institutions in countries like Poland and Hungary.

The conference took place in the Brussels’ beautiful Academy Palace, and opened with a welcome by Professor Jan Wouters (left), Co-Director of the Global Governance Summer School.

The conference featured keynote remarks by Daniel Keleman, Professor of Political Science and Law and Jean Monnet Chair in European Union Politics at Rutgers University, and Koen Lenaerts, President of the Court of Justice of the European Union (right). Two policy roundtables also featured perspectives from academics and advocates from around Europe on democracy and rule of law in the European Union, respectively.

From left, Kathleen Garnett, Holly Stephens, Steven Miller, Alicia Millspaugh, Emily Snow.