Lalive Lecture
Each year, the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (HEID) and LALIVE organise and co-host the Lalive Lecture at the HEID. The first one took place in 2007.
The purpose of the lecture series is to create a forum for intellectual reflection on recent developments in the interface between public and private international law. The series is named in honor of Me Jean-Flavien Lalive and Professor Pierre Lalive, two prominent Geneva lawyers and founders of the LALIVE firm, who have dedicated their professional and academic careers to the interaction between these two fields.
2011: Prof. David D. Caron "International Courts and Tribunals: Their role amidst a world of Courts"
On 23 June 2011, the fifth Lalive Lecture was delivered by Prof. David D. Caron, Professor of Law at the University of California, Berkeley Law, and President of the American Society of International Law, on "International Courts and Tribunals: Their role amidst a world of Courts". Professor Caron argued that the debate on the function of international courts and tribunals could best be understood in terms of the distinction between their primary and secondary functions. While their primary function is to resolve disputes, there is less consensus on their secondary functions, which may relate to a variety of public policy goals - restoring peace and security, enforcing rule of law, promotion of foreign investment, etc. The event was as usual well attended and lecture gave rise to a lively debate. The lecture will be published in the ICSID Review in the autumn of 2011.
2010: Judge Gilbert Guillaume "Le précédent dans la justice et l'arbitrage international"
In 2010, the Lalive lecture was delivered on 2 June by Judge Gilbert Guillaume, former President of the International Court of Justice on "Le précédent dans la justice et l'arbitrage international". Using the breadth of his experiences as long-time agent to the French Government, ICJ judge and president, and international arbitrator, Judge Guillaume drew a picture of precedent in the various international dispute resolution systems. He distinguished the use by international jurisdictions of their own precedent from the - more recent - use of precedent in other international dispute resolution systems, including by ICSID, NAFTA and UNCITRAL tribunals in investment arbitrations. The debate that followed turned on the need for equilibrium between flexibility and certainty. The lecture has been published: See G. Guillaume, « Le précédent dans la justice et l'arbitrage international (Lalive Lecture, 2 juin 2010) », J.D.I. (doctr. 8), 2010, Vol. 137, No. 3, pp. 685-705.
2009: Prof. Jan Paulsson "Looking rigorously at national law from the outside: how does an international tribunal distinguish droit from loi?"
The third Lalive lecture was delivered on 27 May 2009 by Prof. Jan Paulsson, co-head of the international arbitration and public international law groups of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, President of the London Court of International Arbitration and a highly regarded practitioner. He spoke on how international arbitrators may and should distinguish between a country's statutory laws ("lois") and underlying legal principles ("droit"). The lecture was a success and sparked a very lively debate. It was published in the ICSID Review (J. Paulsson, "Unlawful Laws and the Authority of International Tribunals", ICSID Review, Vol. 23, No. 2, Fall 2008, p. 215).
2008: Prof. Pierre Mayer "Contract claims et clauses juridictionnelles des traités relatifs à la protection des investissements"
The 2008 lecture took place on 22 May 2008 and was delivered by Professor Pierre Mayer, a highly regarded arbitrator and partner in the Paris office of Dechert LLP, who reflected on the distinction between treaty claims and contract claims in State-investor arbitration, an increasingly important issue in the field of international investment disputes. (P. Mayer, "Contract claims et clauses juridictionnelles des traités relatifs à la protection des investissements", J.D.I., 2009, pp. 71-96.)
2007: H. E. Judge Rosalyn Higgins "The International Court of Justice and Private International Law Thoughts"
The inaugural lecture was delivered on 9 July 2007 by H. E. Judge Rosalyn Higgins, President of the International Court of Justice, The Hague on the topic “The International Court of Justice and Some Private International Law Thoughts”. The lecture was followed by a reception. The event was an astounding success, with more than 200 attendants. (R. Higgins, "The International Court of Justice and Private International Law Thoughts", In: R. Higgins, Themes and Theories. Selected Essays, Speeches and Writings in International Law, Vol. 2, Oxford University Press, 2009, pp. 1307-1319.)