Showcase

Importance of the independence of the judiciary

Presented By

Public and Professional Interest Division (PPID)

Description

Prominent speakers from several continents will discuss why the
independence of the judiciary is a key element of the Rule of Law
and why it should continue to be a primary issue for any lawyer at
the beginning of the 21st century. They will analyse to what extent
the original concept of independence of judges from the executive
branch of the Government should be broadened to include
independence from other outside pressures such as media, wealth
etc, as well, and, if so, by what means the judiciary should be
protected from such pressures in the years to come. The session will
also deal with the impact of judicial independence on the business
environment and business lawyers and will address issues specific to
Latin America as well as other regions.

Location

Date

Monday 13 October (10:00 - 13:00)

Presentation on the IBA Legal Practice Division Task Force on Extraterritorial Jurisdiction

Presented By

Legal Practice Division (LPD)

Description

In October 2006, the Legal Practice Division of the IBA established
the Task Force on Extraterritorial Jurisdiction, which has
embarked on a two-year project to produce a White Paper and
recommendations on extraterritorial jurisdiction in a number of
areas. The Task Force has focused on extraterritorial jurisdiction in
the context of:

. competition - antitrust;
. bribery and corruption;
. tort law;
. criminal law;
. securities law; and
. insolvency law.

There has been a steady increase in states exercising extraterritorial
jurisdiction but little abatement of the controversies surrounding
such exercise. Exercises of extraterritorial jurisdiction involve a
fundamental dilemma. On the one hand, every state has the right
to regulate its own public order, so it is entitled to legislate for
persons and conduct occurring within its territory. This principle is
considered to be a corollary of state sovereignty. On the other hand,
however, states are permitted to legislate over certain persons and
conduct occurring outside their borders. When this happens, the
same conduct may be regulated by two or more states.

Extraterritoriality thus raises two important questions:

(1) When should a state be able to regulate persons or conduct
occurring outside its territory?

(2) How should overlaps or conflicts of jurisdiction between two
or more states be resolved?

The Task Force has focused on both issues. In addition to laying
out the principles governing extraterritoriality, the White Paper
provides recommendations for governments, courts, international
organisations and businesses on methods for minimising costs and
conflicts associated with extraterritorial exercises of jurisdiction.
These recommendations may include increasing governmental
cooperation through the adoption of international standards or
principles of mutual recognition, as well as promoting recourse
to judicial doctrines such as comity, forum non conveniens and
exhaustion of local remedies. The Task Force has considered
legislative changes for various countries' statutes.

At this session, the Task Force will present its White Paper and
feedback will be sought from the audience.

Location

Date

Wednesday 15 October (10:00 - 13:00)

Rendition, disappearances and indefinite detention: debates around torture

Presented By

HRI - Human Rights Institute

Session / Workshop Chair(s)

Session Chair	Justice Richard J Goldstone
Officer Title	Co-Chair Human Rights Institute
Law Firm	Past Justice of the South African Constitutional Court and former Prosecutor for the ICTR and ICTY
Location	Morningside, South Africa

Description

Guantánamo Bay has been the most visible feature of the
United State's policy of detention through its 'war on terror'. The
accompanying policy of rendition of suspects to secret detention
sites has also increasingly been the focus of media attention. The
UK Foreign Secretary, David Milliband, publicly apologised after it
was revealed that two US 'special rendition' flights carrying terrorist
suspects had been allowed to refuel on British territory' despite
earlier assurances from the Government that no such involvement
in rendition had occurred.

Although there is a deficit of official figures regarding how many
individuals are detained at various locations by the United States on
a worldwide basis, the United States itself has admitted to holding
at least 14,000 people without charge. Some media reports place
the figure of detainees as high as 83,000. Most of these detainees
are allegedly held in Iraq, but Morocco, Syria, Egypt, Pakistan,
Poland, Afghanistan and Thailand are also reported to be hosting
detention centres. The policy of secret detention and so called
'extraordinary' rendition, coupled with renewed debates about the
use of 'enhanced interrogation techniques' and water-boarding
has led to the question: to what extent has the prohibition of
torture, a principle which has achieved the status of jus cogens in
international law, been undermined?

The IBAHRI decided that there was a need to research the legal
issues surrounding the detention policy of the United States
and shed some light on the so-called legal black hole known as
Guantánamo Bay and the related policy of extraordinary rendition.
The objective of the project is to carry out analysis of the relevant
binding rules found in international humanitarian law, international
criminal law and international human rights law pertinent to the
policy of rendition and the treatment of those being held in secret
detention sites. The final report containing the findings of the
research project will be presented at this session.

Speakers

Speaker	Leonard Rubenstein
Law Firm	Physicians for Human Rights
Location	Washington, USA

Speaker	Zachary Katznelson
Law Firm	Reprieve
Location	London, England

Speaker	Dr Clara Sandoval
Law Firm	University of Essex
Location	Colchester, England

Speaker	Yuval Ginbar
Law Firm	Amnesty International
Location	London, England

Location

Date

Wednesday 15 October (15:00 - 18:00)

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