As multilateral systems face growing strain and institutional legitimacy faces fundamental challenges, the role and relevance of public international law are increasingly uncertain.
This session, featuring New York-based Partner Marco de Sousa and co-hosted with Twenty Essex, examined how international law is made, contested and enforced when major powers selectively invoke norms and traditional governance anchors such as the United Nations and the World Trade Organization lose influence. The discussion considered treaty practice, contested sovereignty, collective security and the potential future for middle powers. It mapped the structural challenges confronting international law and asked whether states should rebuild institutions, create new ones or rethink the foundations of global governance.
Speakers
- Professor Payam Akhavan (Chair) – Twenty Essex
- Marco de Sousa, Partner – Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
- Penelope Nevill – Twenty Essex
- Professor Devika Hovell – The London School of Economics and Political Science
- Professor Marko Milanović – The University of Reading, School of Law
Member Hosts
- Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
- Twenty Essex
Key contacts
Marco de Sousa
Partner, New York
Andrew Cannon
Partner, Head of International Arbitration, London and Paris
Christian Leathley
Partner, Head of International Arbitration, US, London and New York
Hannah Ambrose
Partner, London
Vanessa Naish
Knowledge Counsel, London
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