In the 1st episode of 2021, Peter Quayle and Stephen Minas discuss the establishment & early years of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the practice of institutional law at MDBs and other international organizations, & the role of international administrative tribunals. Peter Quayle is a Visiting Fellow at the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law, University of Cambridge & Visiting Professor of International Organizations Law at Peking University Law School. Previously, he was Chief Counsel & established the corporate law function at the AIIB. His current academic research focuses on the employment law of the international civil service.

In the 2nd session of the STL Law & Sustainability Colloquium, Dr Nilüfer Oral discussed the existing frameworks in relation to protection of the marine environment under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and climate change under the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) regime. The discussion identified the gaps within each regime, the gaps between the two regimes and how synergies may be developed to address the important climate risks to the health of the ocean. Dr Oral is Director of the Centre of International Law (CIL) at the National University of Singapore and is a member of the UN International Law Commission and Co-chair of the Study Group on sea-level rise in relation to international law.

In this episode, Professor Rostam J. Neuwirth & Dr Stephen Minas discuss the ‘cooperation & dialogue platform’ of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China & South Africa) & legal developments in BRICS cooperation, such as the creation of the New Development Bank, as well as Prof. Neuwirth’s concept of ‘legal oxymora’. Rostam Neuwirth is the Head of the Department of Global Legal Studies at the University of Macau.

In the 1st STL Law & Sustainability Colloquium session, Christoph Schwarte reflected on how the pandemic may affect the international body of law related to climate change, and provided an overview on the specific challenges for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) process. Christoph is executive director of Legal Response International (LRI) - a London based charity that provides free legal support to developing countries and civil society observer organisations in connection with the international climate change negotiations. The webinar was recorded on November 4th.

Technology and changing business models are disrupting the legal profession, legal services and law schools. In this episode, Ray Campbell and Stephen Minas discuss the possibilities as well as limitations of LawTech and LegalTech innovations in the legal profession, such as online dispute resolution and the use of artificial intelligence in courts; regulatory change to encourage innovation; and the future of law schools. Professor Campbell is a scholar of civil procedure and professional responsibility at STL. His research concentrates on the intersection of law and commerce, with a special focus on the changing nature of the legal services marketplace in light of technological and economic innovations.

In this episode, Liu Yue and Stephen Minas discuss refugee law and the process of seeking asylum in both developed and developing countries. Yue shares his experience working with refugees and asylum seekers in Bangkok, Thailand. The discussion also explores recent asylum cases concerning the US southern border, the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for refugees and asylum seekers and UNHCR reactions. Liu Yue is a C.V. Starr lecturer at STL and was a Volunteer Legal Advocate for urban refugees with Asylum Access Thailand in Bangkok prior to joining STL. He holds a a J.D. from University of California, Hastings College of the Law, and a B.A. in English from Fudan University.

In this episode, Joy Xiang and Stephen Minas discuss intellectual property rights management for clean technologies, innovation in developed & developing countries, international cleantech cooperation under trade & climate change law, & the role of cleantech in building back better from the COVID-19 pandemic. They also discuss Professor Xiang’s proposals for strengthening cleantech cooperation. Joy Xiang is assistant professor at STL & a 2019/20 fellow at the Asian Law Institute, National University of Singapore.

In this episode, Susan Finder and Stephen Minas discuss China’s highest court, the Supreme People’s Court (SPC), and key SPC developments in 2020: The SPC’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, various aspects of judicial modernization, the China International Commercial Court within the SPC, and the SPC’s “Opinion on providing services and guarantees for the Belt & Road”. Susan Finder is Distinguished Scholar in Residence at STL and author of the Supreme People’s Court Monitor blog.

In this episode, Mark Feldman and Stephen Minas discuss the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on transnational arbitration, as well as broader developments in transnational dispute resolution (including arbitration, mediation and international commercial courts) at a time of both the claimed economic ‘decoupling' between the United States and China and the promotion of ‘connectivity’ agendas such as China’s Belt and Road Initiative.