The Spring of 2026 has been a time of much reflection in our International and Comparative Law program. We have been following closely international events of concern and the challenges these pose to the enforcement of international law. Our faculty and students are working daily to promote the advancement, knowledge, and implementation of international law, despite the current obstacles and waves. Our program will always promote hope in the face of adversity and convene strategic discussions to explore ways to move forward. Our wish is that our upcoming graduates will always embrace international law values, including peace, the rule of law, human dignity, and equality. I thank you for your continued collaboration and engagement with our program.

Rosa Celorio

Burnett Family Associate Dean of International and Comparative Legal Studies and Distinguished Professorial Lecturer in International and Comparative Law and Policy

On January 16th, 2026, the ICL program hosted a discussion on the U.S. and International Law Implications of the United States intervention in Venezuela. The event featured remarks from our globally known faculty, including Laura Dickinson, Lyle T. Alverson Professor of Law; Bill Dodge, Lobingier Professor of Comparative Law and Jurisprudence; Sean D. Murphy, Manatt/Ahn Professor of International Law; and Ed Swaine, Charles Kennedy Poe Research Professor. Rosa Celorio, the Burnett Family Associate Dean and Distinguished Lecturer in International Law, moderated this event. This event was co-sponsored by the GW Law National Security, Cybersecurity, and Foreign Relations Law Program. 

Dean Rosa Celorio served as convener in the Robert E. Dalton Roundtable on International Law in Government Practice hosted by the American Society of International Law on Wednesday, February 18th, 2026. This year’s roundtable highlighted career pivots for government attorneys. Soumya Silver, from George Washington University Law School, Jun Jin from the United Nations Development Program, and Samuel Moss from AMAZON LEO, served as panelists.

On April 3, 2026, the Program hosted the Fourteenth Annual Potomac Foreign Relations Law Roundtable at the Law School, with the leadership of Professor Laura Dickinson. The Roundtable is a one-day workshop that brings together scholars, government lawyers, and other experts in foreign relations law from the mid-Atlantic region to discuss works in progress and current topics in U.S. foreign relations law. The GW Law Program in National Security, Cybersecurity, and US Foreign Relations Law co-hosted the event.

On April 22, Professor Dodge participated in the panel The Role of Domestic Courts in Defending the Rule of Law, which examined how domestic courts play an increasingly central role in giving effect to, interpreting, and ultimately defending the international rule of law. Professor Murphy participated in the panel Advancing a New Treaty for Punishment and Prevention of Crimes against Humanity: the 2026 Preparatory Committee Negotiations, which reflected on the discussions among States and civil society so far on issues such as the content, scope, and future of this treaty, among other aspects.

On March 5, 2026, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights published Advisory Opinion OC-30/25 of December 3, 2025, in which it affirms the obligations of governments under human rights law to regulate firearm companies and prevent foreseeable harms, as well as the responsibilities of firearms companies whose conduct contributes to illicit arms trafficking and gun violence in the region. The GW Law Civil & Human Rights Law (CHRL) Clinic played an active role in securing this groundbreaking Advisory Opinion by the Inter-American Court. Through written and oral submissions to the Court in 2023, the Clinic and its co-counsel, Global Action on Gun Violence (GAGV), argued for the very approach adopted by the Court in its opinion.

Professor Paulina Vera became Director of the Immigration Clinic on July 30th, 2025. On February 15th, students-attorneys Caroline Peters and Angelica Salazar conducted a KYR presentation to a group of about 40 primarily Spanish-speakers at a local church in Alexandria. Caroline and Angelica shared information about the rights individuals in this country have regardless of immigration status, tips on finding a quality lawyer, and what to do if a loved one is detained. On March 25th, student-attorneys Hope Cuxeva and Diana Metz Arguello completed updates to a resource packet specific to the DC-area. The resource packet lists resources for clothing, food, housing, and medical needs and includes organizations that serve individuals regardless of their immigration status. On March 26th, student-attorneys Mary O'Brien and Diana Metz Arguello submitted a comment to an interim final rule that seeks to make appellate filing procedures before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) more stringent. Mary and Diana argued that this rule violates due process and explains why it would harm the clients that the Immigration Clinic serves. On March 26th, student-attorneys Hope Cuxeva and Tara Rasouli represented their clients, a family of four from Bolivia seeking asylum, in their Master Calendar Hearing before the Annandale Immigration Court. Hope and Tara were successful in getting a merits hearing for their clients in 2027. 

The GW International Law Society Reception, held on March 26 in the City View Room of the Elliott School of International Affairs, brought together students and a diverse group of international law practitioners from private practice, government, and academia for an evening of networking and professional engagement. The event was designed to foster meaningful connections between students and professionals working across a broad range of international law fields, including international arbitration, human rights, corporate law, and global governance. Through conversations and informal discussions, students had the opportunity to gain insight into different career paths and build relationships with practitioners in a supportive and collaborative setting. The reception reflects ILS’s continued commitment to creating accessible, high-impact opportunities that connect GW Law students with the international legal community.

Our SJD Student, Muneera AlKhalifa was interviewed by the Library of Congress Blogs.  She is currently serving as a Library of Congress Scholar-in-Residence. Muneera is studying the legal question - What must Bahrain do to become a knowledge-based economy? –which requires a comparative study of several states, including the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Her dissertation is exploring the dynamics and empirical challenges of economic diversification, assessing transitioning into a knowledge-based economy from a comparative perspective.   

Arturo Carillo, Professor of Law, Director of the Civil and Human Rights Law Clinic, and Co-Director of the Global Internet Freedom & Human Rights Project  - Professor Carrillo’s latest article was published in the online edition of the American Journal of International Law: Arturo J. Carrillo, Jonathan Lowy and Emily Fallin (GW Law ’25), Promoting Firearm Industry Accountability for Civil and Human Rights Abuses in the United States through Strategic Transnational Litigation; AJIL Unbound,  March 23, 2026.

Rosa Celorio, Associate Dean for International and Comparative Legal Studies and Burnett Family Distinguished Professorial Lecturer in International and Comparative Law and Policy – Dean Celorio published the article Inter-American Reproductive Autonomy in the Denver Journal of International Law & Policy.  The article discusses the concept of reproductive autonomy in the jurisprudence of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, its development to date, and its potential contours in the future.  This paper is an invited contribution to the Leonard v.B. Sutton Colloquium on Human Rights and Reproductive Justice organized by the Ved Nanda Center for International & Comparative Law at the Sturm College of Law, University of Denver, on Saturday, February 15th, 2025. Dean Celorio also participated in the following events this Spring of 2026 as a speaker: Amnesty International Roundtable on Rule of Law and Independence of Judges, Lawyers and Justice Actors (January 8th, 2026); ASIL Annual Meeting, Career Mentoring (April 23rd, 2026); International Congress on Gender, Justice, and Global Transformations, Faculty of Law, University of Oviedo, Spain (April 28th, 2026); and Book Presentation: Gender International Legal Responses to Environmental Chronic Emergencies (May 14th, 2026). 

Laura Dickinson, Lyle T. Alverson Professor of Law - Professor Dickinson presented papers and delivered talks at multiple conferences and events, including a talk entitled “Foreign Affairs Privatization in 2026: Public Values and the Current Status of Accountability and Oversight of Military, Security, and Foreign Affairs Contractors” at conference hosted by the Emory Journal of International Law, a paper entitled “Privatization and Executive Power in the US National Security State,” presented at the GW Law School faculty workshop and the Potomac Foreign Relations Law Roundtable, and a talk entitled “Privatization and War Powers,” at conferences hosted by Loyola Chicago Law School, the University of Illinois, and the University of Virginia Law School. Professor Dickinson served as a discussant at roundtable hosted by the University of Pennsylvania Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law and also spoke at a GW Law panel addressing legal issues related to U.S. military operations in Venezuela. A book co-edited by Professor Dickinson, International Law Stories (2nd ed., Foundation Press), was recently published, and the book includes a chapter by Professor Dickinson entitled “Abu Ghraib.” Professor Dickinson’s chapter, “Legalistic Policy and Limits to the Global War Paradigm for Counterterrorism” was also recently published in International Law and Perpetual War (Brianna Rosen, ed. Oxford University Press). 

Sean Murphy,  Manatt/Ahn Professor of International Law – In April 2026, Professor Murphy appeared as counsel on behalf of Armenia for a jurisdiction hearing in Energy Charter Treaty Arbitration (Azerbaijan v. Armenia), PCA Case No. 2023-65. In March 2026, Professor Murphy traveled to Philadelphia to participate as an advisor in the drafting of the Restatement (Fourth) on the Foreign Relations Law of the United States. Also in March, an arbitral panel that included Professor Murphy rejected on the merits claims brought in African Asset Finance Company Holdings B.V. v. Ethiopia, PCA Case No 2023-61. 

Lisa Schenck, Associate Dean for National Security, Cybersecurity, and Foreign Relations Law; Distinguished Professorial Lecturer in Law – Dean Schenck was the recipient of the Robinson O. Everett Distinguished Life Service Award on May 7th, 2026 by the Judge Advocates Association & Judge Advocates Foundation.

Kristoffer Svedsen, Assistant Dean for Energy Law – Dean Svedsen was elected as an Associate Member of the International Academy of Comparative Law.

Paulina Vera, Director, Immigration Clinic, Distinguished Professorial Lecturer in Law – On February 26th, Professor Vera spoke on a panel titled "Allies in Action" hosted by the GW undergrad chapter of Latinas Promoviendo Comunidad Sorority, Inc. The panel focused on current events in immigration law and how individuals can support the immigrant community. On March 20th, Professor Vera spoke on a panel titled "Serving the Community - How Clinics Across the Nation are Handling the Immigration Crisis" as part of the National Latina/o Law Student Association (NLLSA) Annual Conference in Detroit, MI.

This event was hosted on Tuesday, February 24th, 2026 and organized by GW Law alum and adjunct law professor Soumya Silver and had the participation of Ambassador Cindy Dyer from the McCain Institute; Ambassador John Richmond, from Atlas Free; Alexandra Gelber, currently at Google and former Deputy Chief of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section of the US Department of Justice; and Tanya Gould, former US Advisory Council Member and renown Survivor Leader. Professors Soumya Silver and Kate Hill will continue to teach the course Human Trafficking Law (6572) during the Fall of 2026.

The ICL Program hosted on Thursday, February 26th, 2026, the event From Laws to Jobs : A Comparative Analysis of the Gap Between Legal Frameworks and Economic Outcomes which featured a discussion of the latest Women, Business, and Law Report published by the World Bank. The event had remarks from Tea Trumbrik, Manager of the Women, Business and the Law Group at the World Bank; Mariam Gnakra, LLM Alum of the Law School and Legal Analyst of the Women, Business, and the Law Group; and Shantel Marekera, Legal Analyst of the Women, Business and the Law Group.

Taylor Kilpatrick, Senior Programs Manager at the American Society of International Law, discussed on Thursday, March 26th, 2026, steps that students and graduates can take while still in law school or in their early careers to help themselves stand out in the search for international law positions.  

On Thursday, February 12th, 2026, GW Law's International and Comparative Law Program hosted the U.S. State Department Advisory Committee Meeting on Public International Law.

On Tuesday, January 20th, 2026, the ICL Program hosted Professor Santiago Aversa for a discussion on environmental law priorities and challenges in Argentina. Santiago Aversa currently works as an Associate Professor at Universidad del Salvador, where he teaches Constitutional Law, Comparative Legislative Process, and Constitutional Interpretation.

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