McKeown Discusses International Law
Dean Claudio Grossman, President of American Society of International Law Lori Fisler Damrosch, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, and Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Margaret McKeown
M. Margaret McKeown of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit was the Distinguished Discussant in response to the address by President Michele Bachelet of Chile at the Grotius Lecture. The lecture, co-sponsored by the American Society of International Law (ASIL) and American University Washington College of Law, served as an opening event for ASIL’s annual meeting, held in Washington, DC on March 31.
According to the ASIL event recap, Judge McKeown discussed her work as chair of the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative. She encouraged ASIL members and the international legal community to face international law challenges in a principled, multi-faceted approach that calls on both state institutions and nongovernment actors. She stressed the importance of strong domestic judiciaries as the front line of international law, applying the law impartially and giving life to international law principles in their decisions.
On March 18, Judge McKeown also gave the keynote address at the 50th anniversary of the Central District of California, which celebrated the district's role in landmark international law cases. The title of her address was: "How International Law Became a Four Letter Word."
Judge McKeown’s contribution to legal scholarship in international law extends to her participation as Adviser on the Restatement of the Law Fourth, Foreign Relations Law of the U.S. – Treaties, and Restatement of the Law, U.S. Law of International Commercial Arbitration projects. In addition to her project participation, Judge McKeown has been an ALI Council member since 2009, and serves on the Governance Committee as well as on a Regional Advisory Group. She is also an Adviser on the Restatement of the Law, Copyright project.
The below video is a recording of the ASIL Grotius Lecture, sponsored by American University Washington College of Law.
