Articles for author: Filippo Fontanelli

Suggesting Solutions: Do the Right Thing

This short presentation distils the conclusions of the panel regarding the international law angle of the post-Sentenza scenario. They reflect some degree of consensus which was reached on certain crucial points, including the steps ahead. Keep calm… The applicable rules of international law are clear. A State’s immunity in the civil courts of another State is granted also in the case of serious human rights violations, and irrespective of whether the victims could bring their cases to other courts or resort to an alternative remedy. This is what the law is. What the law should be is another story, one ... continue reading

15. Mai 2017

Damage-assessment on the building of international law after the Italian Constitutional Court’s decision no. 238 of 2014: no structural damage, just wear and tear.

This symposium invites reflections on the intercourse between national courts and international law, in light of the recent judgment of the Constitutional Court of Italy (no. 238 of 2014, of 22 October 2014). I briefly examine this judgment’s impact on international law in two respects. First, whether it can point to a new principle of international law. Second, whether it undermines international law as such. I have elsewhere summarised the main aspects of the ruling, and criticised its inward-looking approach. The Italian judges deliberately avoided engaging with international law and therefore their ruling serves, at most, as cheap-talk for the ... continue reading

15. Dezember 2014