Report of the Third Biennial Conference of the European Society of International Law,
held at the University of Heidelberg, September 4 – 6 2008.
Europe has always been at the heart of international law, even if its legacy mingles with other
influences. Theoretical works have long explored “the European tradition of international
law” and emphasised the unique character of this contribution. Critics have, of course, scoffed
at European pretensions to universality in this discipline, either by arguing that Europe is
essentially preoccupied with European interests which are not truly universal, or because it
seems to them to be too often motivated by its own interests. Nevertheless, regardless of the
perspective adopted, Europe’s historical contribution cannot be denied. European theorists
have played a central role in the evolution of international law, and the promotion of the
international rule of law continues to permeate European foreign policy.
It is therefore all the more surprising that, until recently, an organisation which aimed to
gather together all European international lawyers simply did not exist. In this respect, the
inaugural conference of the European Society of International Law, held in Florence in May
2004, was an extraordinary event – as was the second biennial conference which was held in
Paris two years later. The third biennial conference took place in Heidelberg, Germany from
September 4 - 6, 2008 and according to its participants, a wide range of students, young
researchers, established academics and practitioners, hailing from all over Europe and
beyond, the Heidelberg team has been able to tie in with the success of its predecessors
The following report gives an account of its proceedings and highlights.
Conference Venue
The conference took place in the buildings of the Ruprecht Karls University which is located
in the very heart of Heidelberg, along Europe’s longest pedestrian zone. The conference
events were held in two buildings: the lecture rooms and auditorium of the New University,
and the ceremonial auditorium of the Old University (Domus Wilhelmina). The latter was
built from 1712 to 1735 and was redecorated on the occasion of the University’s 500th
anniversary in the style of the neo-renaissance. As the University’s primary hall for
solemnities and receptions, the auditorium, with its portraits of Elector Ruprecht I and
Margrave Karl Friedrich of Baden which remind the visitor of the eponyms of Germany’s
oldest university, was ideally suited to host the conference’s opening ceremony and provided
a truly magnificent setting. The New University was then used to host the events of the
following days, its generous atrium providing sufficient space for comfortable tea breaks and
simultaneously allowing for the exhibition of the numerous publications. The setting was
agreed by all to have been truly enjoyable and certainly contributed to the pleasant
atmosphere of the conference.
The organising team:
The conference was organised in association with the Max Planck Institute for Comparative
Public Law and International Law. The organising team was led by Professor Rüdiger
Wolfrum, Director of the Max Planck Institute and President of the International Tribunal for
the Law of the Sea, who used the Institute’s academic as well as administrative resources
during the entire preparatory process and during the conference itself to make this prestigious
event as enjoyable and successful as possible. Throughout this process the Institute was
efficiently supported by the entire ESIL management and President Hélène Ruiz Fabri who
could resort to her previous experience in organising the 2006 conference in Paris.
Participation
Like the previous ESIL conferences, the third biennial conference turned out to be a huge
success. Natural shortage of space made it impossible to register everybody who was
interested in participating. As the conference drew closer the organisers were flooded with emails and phone calls asking for the possibilty to participate. Unfortunately, however,
university premises only allowed for the number of 350 participants. In the end, the number of
participants amounted to a total of 400 attending all or parts of the conference, including the
speakers and the Institute’s researchers.
In the spirit of ESIL, the conference organisers deliberately tried to foster and encourage
broad-based participation from all parts of Europe and they largely succeeded in this. The
conference involved participants from a total of 44 states, 24 of which were European. As in
previous conferences, less than 15% of the total number of participants came from outside
Europe, with the United States, Canada, Australia and Japan representing the largest
contingents. The panelists at the conference also reflected a significant diversity in terms of
nationalities, the largest number of speakers coming from the United Kingdom, the
Netherlands and the United States. Countries which were represented with more than two
panelists were: France, Germany, Belgium, Finland, Italy, Switzerland, Slovenia and Canada.
Programme and structure of the conference:
The conference was entitled: “International Law in a Heterogeneous World”. This topic
reflects an idea which is central to the ESIL philosophy. Heterogeneity is considered to be one
of the pillars upon which Europe’s contribution to international law is built and the organisers
have been trying to reflect this general theme in the variety of topics adressed in the different
panels as well as in the selection of panelists. Among the ESIL’s distinctive characteristics
were: the range of international lawyers participating from all parts of Europe; the extent of
active participation by younger scholars and practitioners (in this regard, the selection process
of the panelists has been significantly altered compared to previous conferences); the effective
promotion of intellectual interaction and participation; and the building of networks and of
cross-cultural understanding (all of the events were scheduled to leave sufficient time for
discussion and were followed by social events).
In terms of structure, the conference theme was considered in a total of 15 panels, two
keynote speeches and one concluding round table.
Keynote speeches
The goals set for the keynote sessions were to stimulate the discussion, setting the tone for
some of the debates that followed, and to reflect a genuinely diverse range of viewpoints.
Keynote addresses to the plenary were delivered by Prof. Bruno Simma, Judge at the
International Court of Justice, and Prof. Rein Müllerson of King’s College London.
Fora
The conference entertained a total of 15 panels adressing a variety of topics. There were eight
different fora and seven agorae, each on a different theme. Each forum involved four speakers
and a chairperson. The purpose of the fora was to invite contributions on different specific
aspects of the main topic of the conference. The various topics of each forum were
consequently approached through the lens of the overall topic of “International Law in a
Heterogeneous World”. In light of this general theme, the fora adressed the following eight
topics:








International Law and Religions
Immigration/Migration: How States Cope with Increasing Pluralism within their
Societies – the Role of International Law
The Multiplicity of Law-making Processes
International Law and the Media/ Interaction between International Law and the
Media in a Heterogeneous World
Heterogeneity Reflected in International Legal Traditions
The Role of the WTO in Balancing Heterogeneity of Interests in the Shaping of
International Law
International Law and the Millenium Development Goals
Refocusing the Rules on Warfare
Agorae
The agorae consisted of three or four speakers and the chair. Unlike the fora, these panels
sought to address wider themes of public international law which were not necessarily related
to the main topic of the conference. Participants were explicitly encouraged to present work in
progress whether it be a book, an article, or other research project. Nevertheless, the
presentations were kept in line with the specific agora themes which included the following:







History of International Law
International Organizations, Institutions and Administration
Legitimacy of International Law
Social Justice and International Law
Sexuality and Gender
International Crime
International Environmental Law
In selecting those to make presentations at such conferences there is always a tension between
the desire to involve the leading personalities in the field and a wish to open up the conference
to as wide an audience as possible. In this regard, this conference differed significantly from
its predecessors and entertained a completely open selection process which was entirely based
on a call for papers. All the papers presented in the fora and agorae were selected through a
competitive process from abstracts received from international law scholars from a wide
variety of backgrounds. Academics of all ages and from all over the world had been
encouraged to respond and did so in great numbers. Regardless of the structure of future ESIL
conferences, the organisers are certain that the call for papers allowed for a diverse,
interesting and highly qualified pool of panelists.
Concluding Roundtable
This closing function was meant to provide the opportunity to reflect on the various themes
that had been raised during the preceeding days and to highlight some of the recurrent points
or issues. The final table was composed of:






Prof. Mark Villiger, Judge at the European Court of Human Rights
Prof. Jan Klabbers, University of Helsinki Director of the Centre of Excellence in
Global Governance Research
Prof. Panu Minkkinen, University of Leicester
Prof. Rein Müllerson, King’s College London
Prof. Jutta Brunnée, University of Toronto, Metcalf Chair in Environmental Law
Prof. Vera Gowlland-Debbas, Graduate Institute of International and Development
Studies Geneva
Award of 1st ESIL Prize
The ESIL conference and the magnificent atmosphere of Heidelberg castle offered an ideal
opportunity to award the first ‘ESIL Prize’. Prof. Matthew Craven was honored for his book
The Decolonization of International Law: State Succession and the Law of Treaties (Oxford
University Press, 2007).
Publication of conference proceedings
All of the panelists were encouraged to present papers in advance. Many of the resulting
papers are subsequently being published in various contexts. In addition, the ESIL and the
Max Planck Institute are working on the publication of all conference presentations.
According to the Constitution of the European Society, activities undertaken under its
auspices must proceed, to the greatest extent possible, in at least two languages — usually
English and French. The publication of the proceedings will, accordingly, be done in the
language employed during the respective oral presentation.
Funding
The most significant contribution to the funding of the conference, apart from the fees paid by
the participants themselves, came from the Fritz Thyssen Stiftung which had already
generously supported the inaugural conference in 2004. This grant made it possible to greatly
expand the range of participants involved through the provision of travel and accommodation
and to grant a substantial number of fee waivers.
The General Assembly of the European Society
One of the most important functions of the conference was to allow members of the European
Society to take part in its General Assembly. The first General Assembly, which took place in
Florence, gave the opportunity not only for the formal adoption of the Society’s statutes and a
discussion of its future directions and activities, but also the election of its inaugural
Executive Board which was renewed in Paris in 2006. In accordance with its Constitution, on
6th September 2008, the General Assembly elected the new Executive Board. The
composition of the Board is now as follows:




Hélène Ruiz Fabri (President)
Francesco Francioni (Vice-President)
Anne Peters (Vice-President)
Thomas Skouteris (Secretary General)
As Members (in alphabetical order):















Mariano Aznar Gomez
Laurence Boisson de Chazournes
Andrea Bianchi
James Crawford
Barbara Delcourt
Vera Gowlland Debbas
Jan Klabbers
Nico Krisch
Lauri Mälksoo
Boldizsar Nagy
August Reinisch
Iain Scobbie
Bruno Simma
Rüdiger Wolfrum
Ineta Ziemele
The Secretariat of the Society is headed by Ms. Joyce Davies, who is also the Society's
Administrative Director. Mr. Carsten Hoppe is the Society's Executive Director.
Future ESIL events
The 3rd. ESIL Research Forum will be held in Helsinki, Finland, on 2 - 3 October 2009. The
Forum will be a joint meeting of the European and American Societies of International Law
(ESIL-ASIL). The 4th. ESIL Biennial Conference will be held in Cambridge, England, in
September 2010.