AUWCL Students Participate in the 70th Session of the UN International Law Commission
On May 13, 2018 a group of AUWCL students headed to NYC for a week long study trip to the International Law Commission (ILC) at the United Nations Headquarters. The trip was a culmination of the International Law Commission Practicum lead by Professor Claudio Grossman, Dean Emeritus, and Jennifer de Laurentiis, Associate Director, Impact Litigation, the Kovler Project Against Torture. Claudio Grossman is currently serving five-year term as a member of the ILC. Before being elected to ILC, Grossman served as chair of the UN Committee against Torture from 2008-2015.
During their week in New York, LL.M. and JD students attended the Seventieth Session of the International Law Commission. After in depth study of normative texts adopted by the ILC and discussions of current developments and challenges in the ILC in the classroom, students had a chance to interact with members of the ILC at the Seventieth Session of the ILC as well as share their feedback on proposed drafts.
Accompanied by Professor Claudio Grossman and Jennifer de Laurentiis, a group of ten students attended a special dinner with the members of the ILC and notable AUWCL alumni. To name few, the dinner guests included ILC members, including Concepción Escobar Hernández (Spain), Juan Manuel Gómez-Robledo (Mexico), Nilüfer Oral (Turkey), Marcelo Vázquez-Bermúdez (Ecuador), Dire D. Tladi (South Africa) as well as Melitón Arrocha, ambassador of Panama to the United Nations who graduated from AUWCL LL.M. International Legal Studies in 1994.
“My experience at the International Law Commission was an extremely rare opportunity to come by for a student. The exposure to the commission's sessions, intensive research, and interaction with the commissioners offered a practical perspective to what I learned in school for the practicum.”
Achalie Kumarage, LL.M.'18