International and EU Environmental Law

Code Cours
2021-FDL-LAW-EN-4010
Langue d'enseignement
Français, Anglais
Ce cours apparaît dans les formation(s) suivante(s)
Période

Présentation

Prérequis

General understanding about international law, relations and actors

Objectifs

The topic of International Law and the Environmental Law looks at a number of specific institutional and material aspects of the way international law contributes to the protection of the global, regional and national environment and fosters sustainable development. The focus of the course will be on:


- multilateral treaties and regimes (global and regional/EU)


- global and regional principles of environmental law


- case law and dispute settlement mechanisms


- relationship between developed and developing countries


- market-based instruments


Strong focus will be on the climate change regime and related topics as to understand the dynamics and development of international relations and the treaty making process.


At the end of the course, the student should be able to:


have a the basic knowledge and understanding of the structure, actors and strength of International Law and Environmental Protection, so as to better appreciate its influence and importance in the field of international relations and in the ordinary lives of everyone.

Présentation

The course is divided into two closely interrelated parts. The first part builds upon the lectures and concentrates upon the development of the institutional and legal dimension of IEL. Subjects which receive attention include:


- Introduction to International Law and the Environment


- The Rio Conventions


- Current and future climate change regime


- Transboundary Pollution


- WTO and the Environment


- European Environmental Law


- Human Rights and the Environment


- Non-compliance procedures and mechanisms in MEA


The second part of the course consists of the examination and it is based on an individual paper assignment and a written test in which all the course materials may be examined.


Each lecture is mainly divided in three parts and structured according to the following:


• Introduction to the topic(s) and highlight the most important points to concentrate upon in your reading and preparation for the next session


• Presentation of the topic(s)


• Discussion of the topics, where possible in relation to recent events, based on the required reading. This requires a good level of preparation and participation from every student. The lectures aim at illustrating the application of the relevant legal framework to practical situations to enhance the students’ ability to identify legal issues (issue-spotting) and construct legal reasoning while applying legal sources.


The second part of the Course only consists of the individual paper and subsequently the written exam itself that marks the end of the course


CONTENTS:


Introduction to International Law and the Environment


- Historical background


- Actors


- Sources



Treaty and non-treaty norms


- Customary Law


- Principles of IEL


- Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEA)



The Rio Conventions


- Biodiversity


- Desertification


- Climate Change regime


- Negotiating a MEA (post-2012 climate change regime)


- Negotiations and IEL


- Copenhagen and the way forward



Transboundary Pollution


- Marine (UNCLOS)


- Atmosphere (LRTAP)


- Ozone (Vienna Convention and Montreal Protocol)



Hazardous substances and wastes


- Chemicals (POPs and PIC convention)


- Wastes (Basel Convention)


- Probo Koala case


- Nuclear Materials



European environmental law and human rights


- Introduction to EU environmental law


- Fundamental Charter


- European Convention on Human Rights



WTO and the Environment


Non-compliance procedures and mechanisms in MEAs


- Ad-hoc non compliance procedures


-State responsibility and strict liability


Modalités

Modalités d'enseignement

24h of effective presence

Assessment is divided in three parts.

1) Attendance of the lectures is required and students are expected to have read through all the required reading for the week, to have done a reasonable amount of preparation, and finally to actively take part in the discussions (15% of the end mark)

2) Students are expected to write an individual paper discuss a specific legal issue under a policy area which may not be touched upon substantially during the general conduct of the course (20% of the end mark)

3) There will be a final exam at the end of the course (Part II of the course) in which the general knowledge acquired by the students during the course will be evaluated. The final exam will be composed of both a multiple choice section and open questions (65% of the end mark)

Évaluation
Examen : coeff. 1

Ressources

Bibliographie

<b>Class books:</b>|||| <b>Advised</b><b> books:</b>|||| - Any general textbook on International Environmental Law (examples):|||| "Guide to International Environmental Law", A. Kiss and D. Shelton|| "The Art and Craft of International Environmental Law", D. Bodansky|| "Principles of International Environmental Law 2nd Edition", P. Sands|| "The Oxford Handbook of International Environmental Law (Oxford Handbooks in Law)", D. Bodansky|| “International Law and the Environment”, P.W. Birnie and A. E. Boyle|| “International Law and Sustainable Development”, A. E. Boyle and D. Freestone|| “International Courts and Environmental Protection (Cambridge Studies in International and Comparative Law)”, T. Stephens|| “Non-Compliance Procedures and Mechanisms and the Effectiveness of International Environmental Agreements”, T. Treves et al.|||||| - Journal articles and papers (examples):|||| “The evolution of sustainable development in international law”, N. Schrijver|| “Litigating Environmental Disputes: Courts, Tribunals and the Progressive Development of International Environmental Law”, P. Sands|| “International Environmental Law After Rio”, P. Sand|||| - Cases (examples):|||| ICJ case law|||| Trail Smelter case (United States/Canada), ICJ reports 16 April 1938 and 11 March 1941, Volume III pp. 1905-1982|| http://untreaty.un.org/cod/riaa/cases/vol_III/1905-1982.pdf|||| Gabcikovo-Nagymaros case (Hungary/Slovakia), ICJ Reports 1997, 7|| http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/92/7375.pdf|||| Fadeyeva v. Russia case, (Application No. 55723/00) on 9 June 2005, European Court of Human Rights (Human Rights)|| http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/view.asp?action=html&amp;documentId=776295&amp;portal=hbkm&amp;source=externalbydocnumber&amp;table=F69A27FD8FB86142BF01C1166DEA398649|||| Shrimp Turtles case, AB-1998-4, 12 October 1998; 38 ILM (1999), 118 (Trade and Environment)|| Summary http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/dispu_e/cases_e/ds58_e.htm||||||