SPIA

Georgia Law Professor Desirée LeClercq receives interdisciplinary research award

University of Georgia School of Law Professor Desirée LeClercq has received a 2025 Teaming for Interdisciplinary Research (TIS) Pre-Seed Award for the research project “Trade and the Future of Transnational Work.” She is part of a collaborative team that includes faculty from the Benson-Bertsch Center for International Trade & Security (CITS), the School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), the Department of Geography, the School of Law, and the Terry College of Business.

UGA’s Office of Research, in partnership with the Office of the Provost, provides “pre-seed” funding to facilitate the formation of faculty teams and collaboration around critical areas of research expertise or emerging research topics. The goal is to stimulate large-scale research team formation and position UGA faculty groups to be more competitive in attracting resources for collaborative research, including internal UGA seed grants and ultimately, external grant support.

LeClercq joined the University of Georgia School of Law in 2024 as an assistant professor. She teaches Contracts, International Trade and Workers Rights, International Labor Law, International Law and U.S. Labor Law, and Public International Law. She also serves as a faculty co-director of the Dean Rusk International Law Center and as the faculty adviser for the Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law. 

Notre Dame’s Emilia Justyna Powell presents “Compliance with Decisions of the Permanent Court of Arbitration” at Georgia Law

Emilia Justyna Powell, Professor of Political Science and Concurrent Professor of Law at the University of Notre Dame, presented a talk entitled “Compliance with Decisions of the Permanent Court of Arbitration” at the University of Georgia School of Law earlier this week.

Powell presented her findings on the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s award compliance. She presented (qualitatively and quantitively) the underlying reasons for the difference in award compliance in State vs State disputes and Investor vs State Disputes.

Powell has written extensively on international law, international courts, territorial and maritime disputes, international dispute resolution, the Islamic legal tradition, and Islamic constitutionalism. Her prominent publications include a book published in Oxford University Press (2020) entitled Islamic Law and International Law: Peaceful Resolution of Disputes, a Cambridge University Press (2011) book, Domestic Law Goes Global: Legal Traditions and International Courts (with Sara McLaughlin Mitchell). Her new book, The Peaceful Resolution of Territorial and Maritime Disputes (with Krista E. Wiegand) has been published with Oxford University Press in 2023. Currently, professor Powell is working on several research projects devoted to international law, the global order, and constitutional studies: the Permanent Court of Arbitration (with Aníbal Pérez-Liñán), the International Maritime Organization (with Michael J. Atkins, JAG, US Coast Guard), human values in constitutions around the world (with Jarek Nabrzyski and Agnieszka Marczak-Czajka), the evolution of Afghan constitutional order (with Josh Paldino, JAG, US Army), customary law and international law in the world constitutions (with Christina Bambrick and Eric Lease Morgan), and Islamic militant groups’ behavior in the context of humanitarian law (with Jessica Stanton and Tanisha Fazal).

This event was co-sponsored by the Dean Rusk International Law Center and the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs.

Shannon Green of USAID’s Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance speaks at Georgia Law

Shannon N. Green, a UGA graduate who serves as the Assistant to the Administrator of the Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance (DRG) at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), spoke to students at the University of Georgia School of Law last week. The discussion, entitled “Building a Career in Human Rights Diplomacy,” was moderated by Dr. Amanda Murdie, Head of the Department of International Affairs and Georgia Athletic Association Professor of International Affairs.

In Green’s current role, she leads USAID’s efforts to invigorate democracy, enhance human rights and justice, and bolster governance that advances the public interest and delivers inclusive development. Previously, Green was the Senior Advisor to the Administrator and Executive Director of the Anti-Corruption Task Force where she led USAID’s historic elevation of anti-corruption and aligned the Agency’s policies, programming, and resources to counter corruption at a global scale.

Before returning to public service in 2021, Green was the Senior Director of Programs at the Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) and Director and Senior Fellow of the Human Rights Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), where her research focused on addressing threats to democratic institutions and norms, enhancing justice and accountability, and improving security forces’ respect for human rights.

From 2004 – 2015, Green held a number of positions in the U.S. Government, including as the Senior Director for Global Engagement on the National Security Council. In that role, she spearheaded efforts to deepen and broaden U.S. engagement with critical populations overseas, including the President’s Stand with Civil Society Agenda and young leader initiatives around the world. Prior to that, Green served in the DRG Center, where she developed policies, strategies, and programs to advance political reform and human rights in the Middle East and North Africa.

This event was part of a visit organized by the UGA Office of Global Engagement under the leadership of the Associate Provost for Global Engagement, Martin Kagel, as part of the FYOS Global Citizenship Cluster series. The event was co-sponsored by the School of Public and International Affairs.

Georgia Law students participate in Congress Week event with former U.S. Representative Steve Driehaus

University of Georgia School of Law students were able to meet with former U.S. Representative Steve Driehaus as part of the Richard B. Russell Special Collections Library‘s 50th anniversary celebration. Current 1L Aubrey “Ellie” Wilson-Wade and 2L Daniel “Tripp” Vaughn participated in a lunch event with Driehaus, where he discussed his career in domestic politics and international development. This lunch preceded the Congress Week lecture featuring Driehaus and former USG Chancellor Steve Wrigley.

Wilson-Wade and Vaughn attended the event with undergraduate and graduate students from across campus, including from the School of Public and International Affairs and from the Washington Semester program. Students were able to hear about Driehaus’ career and ask him questions about the relationship between domestic politics and international development.

Driehaus represented Ohio’s 1st Congressional District from 2008 to 2010. While in the House of Representatives, he focused on issues related to regional development, financial reform, and government accountability. Before serving in the U.S. House, Driehaus spent eight years in the Ohio Statehouse, including time as House Minority whip. He served for three years as Resident Senior Director in Iraq for the National Democratic Institute (NDI), a non-profit NGO that works around the world to safeguard democratic institutions. Driehaus is a founding member of the Good Government Group, a full-service public policy and public relations consulting firm. Additional work experience includes time as the Executive Director of Cincinnati Compass and Country Director for the United States Peace Corps in Morocco and Swaziland.