Topic 1

Introduction

The past several months have given rise to a number of high-level judicial resignations. While the media has been saturated with commentary regarding the retirement of Justice John Paul Stevens from the United States Supreme Court, of equally profound interest to international legal observers is the retirement of two judges from the International Court of Justice in The Hague, the Netherlands (“the ICJ” or “the Court”) – Judge Thomas Buergenthal of the United States and Judge Shi Jiuyong of China.

Introduction

I. Introduction

The power to tax is the power to destroy, or at the very least, the power to make imports of men’s gloves more expensive than imports of women’s gloves. An international business person importing goods into the United States might think that a law which treated differently an identical men’s and women’s product would somehow run afoul of the United States Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause. The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Federal Circuit) has held that it does not.

Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

The 1976 Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) provides the exclusive framework for deciding when foreign governments are entitled to immunity from suit in U.S. courts. [1] Over the years, the Supreme Court has played an integral role in interpreting the statute. This week, the Court once again faces the task of resolving a fundamental question about the FSIA's scope.

I. Introduction

In October 2008, Iceland's banking system collapsed. Within a week, the three major banks comprising ninety percent of the Icelandic banking system had failed. It was one of the fastest and most comprehensive banking crises in history. This collapse occurred at the height of the global credit crunch and followed the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers in the United States.