Students will receive an email when course requests open for the Fall 2026 semester.
Beyond Positive Law: Women, Literature, and Legal Transformation
Ida Ferrero, University of Torino
The proposed course is situated within the Law and Humanities tradition and adopts a transnational perspective on legal development. Law is approached not merely as a system of positive norms, but as a cultural and historical phenomenon shaped by narratives and representations.
Through literary texts, the course examines how law constructs and negotiates gender roles, with particular attention to women as legal subjects, both as individuals and within family structures. The analysis begins with nineteenth- and twentieth-century European legal cultures and then expands to non-European contexts. This comparative approach highlights plural legal orders and challenges Eurocentric models of legal evolution.
The course ultimately aims to provide students with critical tools to rethink law beyond positivism, focusing on gender, power, and transnational legal dynamic.
2 Credits. Evaluation: Attendance and class participation, including one class presentation (30%), Final take-home exam (8 hours) (70%).
Comparative and International Legal Interpretation
Kevin Tobia, Georgetown Law
This course studies legal interpretation across time, legal traditions, and borders. It begins with a comparison of major historical and contemporary traditions of legal interpretation across common, civil, and religious law systems. Students will learn and compare common methods of interpreting constitutions, statutes, and private instruments (e.g. contracts). The course also examines interpretation in public international law (e.g. treaty interpretation) and transnational contexts. Throughout, we will analyze how linguistic, cultural, and legal diversity influence interpretation. The course pursues these topics through theoretical frameworks, case studies, and analysis of current and emerging issues (e.g. linguistic diversity and legal integration; interpreting AI-generated legal texts).
2 Credits. Evaluation: Attendance and class participation, including four 350-word discussion posts (30%), Student presentation (10%), Final research paper (4,000 words) (60%).
ONE-PLUS OPTION:
For 1 extra credit, a limited number of students who need to fulfill a graduation requirement at their home university may write a major research paper. To obtain the extra credit, the student must (a) turn in a written outline of the paper for faculty comment relatively early in the semester, (b) turn in a complete first draft for faculty comment two-thirds of the way through the semester, and (c) write a paper of 6000 words, not including footnotes.
Please note that this course has not yet been approved as a WR course for Georgetown students.
Comparative Constitutional Law
David Schneiderman, University of Toronto
At present there is an unprecedented and ongoing world-wide conversation about how to resolve contentious constitutional questions. There is, in other words, more convergence over answers to constitutional questions and less divergence than has been seen in modern times. A part of that conversation concerns which precedents, issuing out of which jurisdictions, provide models for judicial decision making and which should be strenuously avoided. This seminar examines the content of what might be called the comparative constitutional law canon. Of interest will be the various jurisdictions and cases that serve as both models of constitutional analysis and as anti-models. Among the topics for discussion will be comparative constitutional property rights, social rights, freedom of expression, separation of powers, and proportionality analysis. In addition, selected regional approaches and historic moments that inform contemporary constitutional analysis will be examined.
2 Credits. Evaluation: Class Attendance, Participation, and Posing Questions for One Assigned Reading in Advance of Class (20%), Final research paper (4,000 words) (80%).
Comparative Judicial Review
Yoav Dotan, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The purpose of this course is to discuss, on a comparative basis, the principles of judicial review on legislation and executive decisions in various legal systems. The process of judicial supervision is influenced by the constitutional framework as well as by the legal culture and political conditions of each system. The course will deal with the general conditions under which judicial review takes place as well as with the structural basis of the process of review and the nature of the reviewing courts. It will discuss the fundamental theoretical questions that control the phenomenon of judicial review. It will also examine specific questions such as the preliminary conditions for judicial review (standing etc.), the grounds for review in each system and so forth. Special attention will be given to questions of human rights and national security and to the contemporary challenges posed to judicial systems around the world due to the rise of populism and democratic backsliding. The course will focus primarily on the legal systems of the U.S., England and Israel, but other legal systems such as those of France, Canada, Germany, Brazil and India will also be discussed.
2 Credits. Evaluation: Active class participation (15%), Final take-home exam (during the mid-semester break) (8 hours) (85%).
International Investment Law
Wasiq Abass Dar, Jindal Global Law School and David Schneiderman, University of Toronto
This course examines the basic structure, substantive norms, and numerous controversies concerning the global law to protect and promote foreign investment. This is a new legal regime, made up of over 3,300 bilateral and regional treaties entered into between most states in the world, and that intersects with many conventional legal fields (including administrative law, constitutional law, international law, and international arbitration). The regime is enforced by a contingent of international investment lawyers, operating under a system of privatized justice, in which states are held to account for their treaty violations by awarding damages to harmed individuals and corporations. The first half of the course will be taken up with learning the standards of protection associated with this new legal order. The second half will examine issues associated with jurisdictional and procedural questions in addition to appellate review.
3 Credits. Evaluation: to be confirmed.
International Tax Law and Policy
Leopoldo Parada, King’s College London
The module offers an in-depth exploration of international tax law and policy, providing sustained engagement with doctrine, policy, and practice. It introduces the fundamentals of corporate and personal income taxation in a cross-border context, the allocation of taxing rights through model tax conventions and the MLI, and the operation of double taxation relief and treaty anti-abuse standards. Building on these foundations, the module examines tax competition and tax havens, international corporate tax avoidance and the OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, and the latest reforms under Pillar One and Pillar Two, including global minimum tax rules and digital services taxes. A final block focuses on global tax governance, analysing the evolving roles of the OECD, UN, EU and G20, the politics of tax transparency, and the implications of current reforms for both developed and developing countries. Throughout the module, students will work with case studies, contemporary policy documents and leading scholarly contributions to develop a critical understanding of the effectiveness, legitimacy and future direction of international tax regulation.
2 Credits. Evaluation:
- Individual policy brief (60%): 2,000–2,500-word written brief advising a government or international organisation on a specific contemporary issue, based on a hypothetical scenario released at the end of the teaching term. This assessment allows students to apply the principles, policy trade-offs and governance considerations covered in the module.
- Short in-class presentation (40%): 10-minute mid-term presentation on a contemporary international tax policy issue (e.g., adopting DSTs, introducing a global minimum tax), approached from the perspective of the student’s chosen jurisdiction. Students will summarise the key aspects of the issue, identify the main policy trade-offs and provide recommendations. The presentation will include a short Q&A segment, assessing the ability to communicate complex international tax issues clearly to a policy-oriented audience. This will take place in week 7-8.
Labour Law in the Age of New Technologies: Comparative and Global Perspectives
Einat Albin, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Digital technologies, artificial intelligence, and data-driven management systems are transforming how work is organized and how power is exercised in contemporary workplaces. Platform-mediated labor, algorithmic management, biometric monitoring, and automated decision-making increasingly structure hiring, scheduling, evaluation, discipline, and dismissal.
This course examines how different legal systems respond—and can respond—to these transformations. It adopts a comparative and global perspective, analyzing regulatory approaches in the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, China, and Israel. The course focuses both on the challenges new technologies pose to workers’ rights and on the possibilities they may create for improving working conditions, enhancing transparency, and strengthening collective voice.
Drawing on labor law, data protection, anti-discrimination law, and human rights frameworks, the course develops a rights-centered and structurally grounded understanding of technology at work.
2 Credits. Evaluation: Short reflection paper (30%), Final paper or policy brief (70%).
Law and religion deals with the internal norms of religious communities and with state policies regarding the exercise of religion.
This course introduces to Jewish, Christian and Muslim law as well as to the norms of Asian religions. Of particular interest here is from which texts the norms are derived, how binding they are, which areas of life are regulated, and which methods are used to ensure that the often historically handed-down laws remain applicable in the modern world.
The course furthermore analyses the great diversity of relationships between state and religion around the world, from separatist to state religion systems and the many nuances in between. How do states in different countries regulate the exercise of religion? To what extent religious freedom is guaranteed not only in theory but also in practice? Are there fair conditions, including for members of religious minorities and people without religion? Do religious norms, courts and authorities play a role within the state’s legal system?
Depending on the interests of the students, we will discuss current topics such as religion and gender issues or state regulations regarding discrimination within religious communities.
As with state law and religious law two systems interact, we will also address the question of what can be learned for the theory and reality of legal pluralism.
There will be guest lectures and site visits in London.
2 Credits. Evaluation: Class participation (30%); Research paper (3500-4000 words) analysing one of the topics and its presentation in class (70%).
ONE-PLUS OPTION (for up to 5 students):
For 1 extra credit, a limited number of students who need to fulfill a graduation requirement at their home university may write a major research paper. To obtain the extra credit, the student must (a) turn in a written outline of the paper for faculty comment relatively early in the semester, (b) turn in a complete first draft for faculty comment two-thirds of the way through the semester, and (c) write a paper of 6000 words, not including footnotes.
Please note that this course has not yet been approved as a WR course for Georgetown students.
Navigating Arbitral Awards: Finality, Annulment and Enforcement
Wasiq Abass Dar, Jindal Global Law School
The finality and enforcement of a decision, whether made by a court or an arbitral tribunal, remain crucial considerations for the disputing parties when selecting a dispute resolution mechanism. A defining characteristic of arbitration, both domestic and international, that makes it a preferred dispute resolution mechanism is the final and binding nature of the arbitral awards. The recognition and enforcement of an arbitral award constitute the logical culmination of arbitration – resolving the dispute for good. In essence, once an award is issued, it becomes legally binding on the parties involved – which explains the finality of the arbitral award. This concept is legally underpinned and enforced by relevant national legislations and international instruments, such as the New York Convention on Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration, and the ICSID Convention. While these legal instruments encourage and play a crucial role in facilitating the enforcement of arbitral awards across jurisdictions, they also establish the grounds and procedures through which the appropriate courts may annul or decline to recognise and enforce the arbitral awards. Therefore, an arbitral tribunal rendering an arbitral award may not necessarily bring the dispute to an end. In fact, it may just be the beginning of the final battle. This course is tailor-made to understand and appreciate the life cycle of an arbitral award from a practitioner’s point of view. It will introduce students to the entire spectrum of theoretical and practical issues and concerns associated with the post-award stage, particularly concerning matters related to the annulment and enforcement of arbitral awards – in domestic as well as transnational setting.
2 Credits. Evaluation: Class participation (20%), Short research paper (2000 word) (30%), Final take-home exam (8 hours) (50%).
Non-State Actors in International Law
Yaël Ronen, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
International law developed as a system of relations between states, and states have traditionally been the dominant actors on the international legal plane. Nonetheless, non-state actors (NSAs) have always participated in international life. Over time, some of them have been formally recognised as participants in international law, albeit of a limited capacity. Today international law encompasses a variety of actors – supra-statal, intra-statal and cross-statal. Their rights, obligations and responsibilities are constantly evolving, reflecting political, economic and social phenomena. This development challenges the traditional structure of international law.
The seminar will address the place that different NSAs have in international legal relations. We will examine the international law – rights, obligations, power and immunities – of specific categories of NSAs, including corporations, NGOs, international organisations, as well as putative states, armed groups, indigenous peoples and others. Discussion of the varying levels of effort and success with which international law regulates these categories will facilitate an assessment of the change that NSAs bring to traditional international law.
1 Credit. Evaluation: Case study analysis to be presented in a 10-minute audio+visual recorded presentation; Class participation: Students who actively participate in class discussion in a manner that demonstrates deep familiarity with the assigned reading materials and class materials may receive a grade adjustment bonus of up to 0.5 points.
Property, Suffrage, and Rights in Constitutional History
Ida Ferrero, University of Torino
This course examines constitutional charters from the American Constitution onwards, adopting a historical and legal approach to constitutional development.
Constitutions are analysed as normative instruments regulating citizenship, political participation, and the distribution of rights within the state. Particular attention is devoted to property requirements for suffrage, the legal exclusion and progressive recognition of women’s rights, and the constitutional emergence of workers’ rights.
By situating constitutional texts within their legal and institutional contexts, the course highlights how constitutional norms responded to social conflict and changing economic structures. A comparative perspective, extending beyond Europe, allows students to assess different constitutional models of inclusion and exclusion and to critically evaluate linear narratives of constitutional progress.
2 Credits. Evaluation: Attendance and class participation, including one class presentation (30%), Final take-home exam (8 hours) (70%).
The Law of International Finance and Trade
Jennifer A. Hillman, Georgetown Law and Christian Hofmann, National University of Singapore
This course is delivered in a condensed format.
The first half focuses on international finance and adopts a principles-based, rather than jurisdiction-specific, approach, enabling students to understand the applicable rules in their respective home jurisdictions. After introducing the foundations of global financial markets, this part explores the theoretical and functional concept of money. It compares the characteristics of tangible money, central bank reserve money, commercial bank money and central bank digital currency with those of cryptocurrencies and stablecoins. It will include an introduction to the legal principles governing central bank monetary policy operations. The course further addresses sovereign financing and examines the phenomenon of sovereign debt restructuring, its legal challenges and existing mechanisms to address them, such as collective action clauses. In its final section, the first half turns to the internationally coordinated regulation of banks with cross-border operations, with a focus on the risks inherent in their business models and the corresponding regulatory responses, in particular capital and liquidity requirements.
The second half will turn to the law and policy of international trade, with a focus on the World Trade Organization (WTO) as regional trade agreements (RTAs). The course will cover the basic principles of international trade law, including most-favored-nation (MFN) and national treatment, as well as the law of tariffs, quotas, services, intellectual property, trade remedies, and standards. The course will also examine the current threats to the trading system, including the demise of the WTO’s Appellate Body, and the implications of unilateral tariffs and the growing trade war between the United States and China. The course will conclude with an examination of the tensions between treaty obligations and trade liberalization goals with other values, such as those concerning climate change and the environment, economic development, workers’ welfare, and human rights.
2 Credits. Evaluation: Final take-home exam (8 hours) with a bonus of up to 25% for exemplary class participation.
