International Law Weekend

Each October, the American Branch presents International Law Weekend (ILW) in New York City. This two-and-a-half-day conference features over 30 panels, and many of the world’s leading international lawyers and diplomats participate. In recent years, keynote luncheon speakers have included the president of the American Society of International Law and the Legal Adviser to the U.S. Department of State. Gala receptions have been hosted by the Finnish, Belgian, British, Canadian, French, and Singapore missions to the United Nations.

Recent ILWs have attracted an audience of over 1,200 practitioners, academics, U.N. diplomats, business leaders, federal and state government officials, NGO leaders, journalists, students, and interested citizens. Registration for ILW is very reasonably priced as a service to our members. Sponsorship by law firms, universities, and interested practitioners is welcomed and recognized.

This conference will examine the re-ordering of the international legal order at a pivotal moment of transition. Shifts in global power, challenges to bedrock legal principles, including the prohibition on the use of force, and retreat from long-standing international commitments pose challenges to the status quo, creating both uncertainty and opportunities for renewal. As some traditionally dominant states scale back their engagement with international law and institutions, space opens to reconsider the global distribution and exercise of authority and responsibility.

This interdisciplinary conference will explore how states and regional groupings can step forward to uphold, reinterpret, and strengthen international law through cooperation, innovation, and leadership. It situates these developments within longer trajectories of change in geopolitics and international governance, including those driven by states that gained independence after the United Nations’ founding. It will also highlight the constructive roles of international institutions, non-state actors, and civil society in sustaining, contesting, and advancing legal norms. Rather than signaling decline, these changes invite reflection on what international law might become: more inclusive, more resilient, and better equipped to address contemporary global challenges through diversified sources of legitimacy, power, and collective responsibility.

Brady Mabe, Co-Chair
Jess Peake, Co-Chair
Lisa Reinsberg, Co-Chair

STUDENT AMBASSADORS

The unifying theme for ILW 2025 was Crisis as Catalyst in International Law, as follows:

ILW 2025 will explore how crises can serve as transformative moments that challenge and reshape the framework of international law. Whether political, environmental, economic, or humanitarian, crises compel local, regional, and global actors to confront the limitations of extant legal systems. By serving as catalysts for innovation, crises also provide opportunities to reevaluate and reconstruct international legal norms. This process highlights the dynamic nature of international law, which must balance its foundational principles with the need for flexibility in response to unprecedented events. ILW 2025 encourages participants to reimagine international law.

ILW 2025 explored these issues through a diverse set of engaging and provocative panels, plenary sessions, and keynote addresses. The program included a broad array of both public international law and private international law topics. The conference also included networking opportunities, social events, and award ceremonies.