In A Scrap of Paper, Isabel V. Hull compares wartime decision making in Germany, Great Britain, and France, weighing the impact of legal considerations in each. She demonstrates how differences in state structures and legal traditions shaped the way the three belligerents fought the war. Hull focuses on seven cases: Belgian neutrality, the land war in the west, the occupation of enemy territory, the blockade, unrestricted submarine warfare, the introduction of new weaponry, and reprisals. A Scrap of Paper reconstructs the debates over military decision-making and clarifies the role law played—where it constrained action, where it was manipulated, where it was ignored, and how it developed in combat—in each case. A Scrap of Paper is a passionate defense of the role that the law must play to govern interstate relations in both peace and war.

Foreword by Mr. Didier Reynders, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and European Affairs. Belgium hosts numerous diplomatic missions. These are either accredited to the Kingdom of Belgium or to one of the international organisations headquartered in Belgium. Their operation, as well as the legal status and privileges and immunities of their members, are essentially regulated by the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, dated 18 April 1961. This handbook describes Belgium’s practice vis-à-vis these missions, and analyses the day-to-day implementation of the Vienna Convention by the various Belgian authorities. It systematically reviews the limited number of legislative or regulatory provisions, the Government’s practice – set out inter alia in several ‘circular notes’ communicated to the missions present in Belgium – and, additionally, identifies the jurisprudence of courts and tribunals and highlights the possible deviations from the practice of the executive branch. Designed as a guide intended primarily for diplomatic missions established in Belgium, this handbook is also relevant for civil servants, judges, lawyers and bailiffs encountering questions of diplomatic law in Belgium, as well as for students and researchers seeking information on national practice in this area of law.

This book focuses on major amendments introduced in the Brussels I regulatory framework. The contributions scrutenise the changes introduced in the Brussels Ibis Regulation, a legal instrument that presents a core of the unification of private international law rules on the European Union level. It is one of the first publications addressing all the changes in the Brussels I regulatory scheme, which takes into consideration relevant CJEU case law up to July 2016. The texts, written by legal scholars who have published extensively in the field of private international law and international civil procedure, will add to the development of EU private international law. In addition, the authors’ critical analysis may open further discussions on the topic and so benefit a consistent and harmonised application of the Regulation. In this respect the book takes a different approach than the commentaries which have so far been published. It is primarily meant for legal academics in private international law and practitioners who are regularly engaged in cross-border civil proceedings. It may also be of added value to advanced students and to those with a particular interest in the subject of international litigation and more generally in the area of dispute resolution. Vesna Lazić is a Senior Researcher at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut, an Associate Professor of Private Law at Utrecht University and Professor of European Civil Procedure at the University of Rijeka. Steven Stuij is an expert in Private International Law and an external Ph.D. candidate at Erasmus School of Law, Rotterdam.

International law requires that, before any new weapon is developed, purchased or modified, the legality of its use must be determined. This book offers the first comprehensive and systemic analysis of the law mandating such assessments – Article 36 of the 1977 Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions. Underpinned by empirical research, the book explores the challenges the weapons review authorities are facing when examining emerging military technology, such as autonomous weapons systems and (autonomous) cyber capabilities. It argues that Article 36 is sufficiently broad to cover a wide range of military systems and offers States the necessary flexibility to adopt a process that best suits their organisational demands. While sending a clear signal that law should not simply follow technological developments, but rather steer them, the provision has its limits, however, which are shaped and defined by the interpretative decisions made by States.

The Brussels I Regulation is by far the most prominent cornerstone of the European law of international civil procedure. Every practitioner in the international field has to work with it - and its importance is still growing. The first edition of this full scale article-by-article commentary found a very warm reception. This new edition brings the book up to date, incorporating a host of developments in the four years since ist first appearance, combines in-depth analysis with a genuine and truly European perspective, authored by top experts from all over Europe, covers the jurisprudence of the ECJ and of the Member States, and integrates thorough discussion of the pending proposal for a Brussels Ibis Regulation. This truly European commentary offers invaluable guidance for lawyers, judges and academics throughout Europe.