Professor Milena Sterio was quoted in a Nov. 27, 2024  Guardian article entitled “France says Netanyahu is immune from ICC warrant as Israel is not member of court” (written by  Julian Borger) which is available here: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/27/france-says-netanyahu-is-immune-from-icc-warrant-as-israel-is-not-member-of-cour

This article reports on the French government’s recent statement that it would not execute the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant against the Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, because the French government believes that the latter enjoys immunity.  Professor Sterio was quoted as follows: “The French government’s legal position now with respect to Netanyahu is inconsistent as compared to its position just a few months ago with respect to Putin,” Milena Sterio, a professor at the Cleveland State University College of Law, said. “It is possible that the French government is softening its view vis-a-vis Israel/Netanyahu in order to maintain working ties with the Israeli government, and in order to be in a position to continue to mediate between Israel and Lebanese-based Hezbollah.”

Professor Milena Sterio participated in the 2024 American Society of International Law (ASIL) Midyear Meeting held at the University of Chicago on November 15-16.  Professor Sterio presented her paper, “Parallel Proceeding to Protect the Environment at International Courts” on November 15; on November 16, she moderated a panel on the topic of genocide.

Professor Sterio also participated as a panelist in an episode of the Talking Foreign Policy radio show, on the topic of Taiwan and whether Taiwan is at risk in light of recent Chinese activities in the South China Sea and elsewhere. This episode was broadcast of WCPN/89.7 on December 2, and it is also available on demand here: https://case.edu/law/centers-institutes/cox-international-law-center/talking-foreign-policy

Professor Milena Sterio presented at two different side events at the 2024 International Criminal Court’s Assembly of States Parties in The Hague, Netherlands.  First, Professor Sterio presented on December 2 at a side event entitled “The Flame of Justice: Legacy of the Special Court for Sierra Leone.”  This side event was sponsored by the governments of Canada and Sierra Leone, and the Residual Special Court for Sierra Leone; Professor Sterio’s remarks focused on the most significant legacies of the Special Court for Sierra Leone.  Second, Professor Sterio moderated a side event on December 4 entitled “The Veto.”  This event was sponsored by the governments of Guatemala, The Netherlands, Switzerland, as well as the Public International Law and Policy Group, the Syria Justice and Accountability Centre, the International Center for Transitional Justice, and the Open Society Justice Initiative.  This side event focused on discussing possible legal limits that may exist on the United Nations Security Council’s permanent members’ ability to exercise the veto in the face of atrocity crimes.  Finally, Professor Sterio attended a briefing by the outgoing U.S. Ambassador for Global Criminal Justice, Beth Van Schaack, on December 7, which focused predominantly on the risk of U.S. sanctions against the ICC.  

Dean Lee Fisher published Custodians of Civility, Defenders of Democracy, Guardians of Justice, 73 Clev. St. L. Rev. 2 (2024). The article reiterates conversations by panelists at the Cleveland State Law Review’s symposium discussing the use of law to become Guardians of Justice, the relationship between education and democracy, and the Ohio Constitution as a tool for recapturing the state’s democratic values.

Professor Milena Sterio presented at the Centre for the Study of United Nations O.P. Jindal Global University’s (India) Second Int’l Roundtable on Advancing Global Justice.  The theme of the Roundtable was Strengthening Legal Frameworks In Response to Conflicts, and Professor Sterio presented on a panel on Global Governance Reform: Proposals for Strengthening International Law.  Professor Sterio discussed the ongoing Rohingya crisis and the relative lack of accountability for Myanmar leaders, as well as the International Criminal Court’s inability to prosecute the crime of aggression in Ukraine, as examples of limits of international institutions.  

Professor Brian Ray discussed how a growing number of state laws require organizations to demonstrate that they have developed a cybersecurity governance framework that adopts “reasonable” security measures but critically leave the specifics of that standard undedefined. A smaller number of states, led by Ohio, have identified industry frameworks like NIST, CIS and others as a relevant source of those specifics. Similarly, federal and state regulators have recommended and, in some instances, required organizations to map to those frameworks. This trend overlaps with the increase in more specific cybersecurity requirements in other contexts including federal contractor requirements and federal regulatory agencies.

Professor Milena Sterio moderated a webinar on the topic of “Gender Parity on the International Court of Justice Bench” on October 14. The webinar was sponsored by the American Branch of the International Law Association and co-sponsored by the Women in International Law Interest Group at the American Society of International Law.  Panelists included Judge Kimberly Prost, International Criminal Court, Professor Jose Alvarez, NYU Law School, Patricia Galvao Teles, International Law Commission, and Priya Pillay, Asia Justice Coalition Director.  The webinar focused on the lack of gender parity among judges at the International Court of Justice, as well as on ideas as to how to achieve more gender parity at the court in the future.  The webinar recording is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khTN94N-ZHk

On October 10, 2024, the CSU College of Law, in partnership with Freedom to Learn Advocates (FTLA), hosted an all-day conference entitled “Banned Books and Libraries Under Attack: The Fight for Intellectual Freedom in Our Communities.”  The event was generously sponsored by CSU Law Alumnus, and CEO of Overdrive, Steve Potash.

The day’s second panel was about “Legal Advocates Resisting Books Bans: The Courts and Legislation.” The panel featured Mr. Skip Dye, a Senior Vice President from Penguin Random House; Professor Katie Schwartzman, who directs the First Amendment Clinic at Tulane Law School; Ms. Deborah Caldwell-Stone, Director of the American Library Association (ALA)’s Office of Intellectual Freedom; and Rep. Dana Jones of Maryland, who sponsored the first “Freedom to Read Act” in our nation. 

Professor Kalir moderated the panel, which was extremely well attended. 

Professor Laura Hoffman presented as a panelist at the Oklahoma Law Review 2024 Symposium, which focused on innovation and healthcare involving law at the University of Oklahoma College of Law on Friday, October 4th.  The Oklahoma Law Review will publish Professor Hoffman’s upcoming article, “Putting the ‘Social’ Into Social Determinants of Health: Why Policymaking for Improving Health Must Tackle Social Isolation and Loneliness”, in which she challenges policymakers at all levels to make addressing social isolation and loneliness a priority due to the significant impact on health.

While the COVID-19 pandemic exposed our nation to the impact of social isolation and loneliness on health, research has already demonstrated that these issues have impacted the health of all across our nation far before the pandemic.  The pandemic merely alerted us to the pervasiveness of these issues and contributed further to the impact on health.  This led the U.S. Surgeon General in May 2023 to publish a report on the relationship between social isolation and loneliness in their impact on health, calling it a public health crisis.  Dr. Murthy’s call to action included policy.

Professor Hoffman’s article will include highlights of the U.S. Surgeon General’s report and an update with new research.  She examines how federal, state, and local legislation and policy efforts in the U.S. are now trying to respond to the U.S. Surgeon General’s urgency on this matter and recommendations going forward.

Professor Hoffman’s recommendations include the digital environment and making Broadband internet accessible to all.  As those with mental health needs have benefited from telehealth as a delivery model, the greater availability of access to these services could further improve overall health for many.

Prof. Mark J. Sundahl was the guest on the October 4^th episode of John Quinn’s podcast Law Disrupted, where he discussed the many fascinating issues that have emerged in an era of accelerated space activity. From orbital tourism and mega constellations to lunar mining and the militarization of Earth’s orbits, the wide-ranging conversation is the epitome of “law disrupted.”