Women in International Law
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The Women in International Law Interest Group (WILIG) was created to promote and enhance the careers of women in the field of international law. WILIG not only supports women who are already in the field in order to allow the development of their full potential for achievement and leadership, but also supports, encourages, and enhances opportunities for others who are interested in entering the field of international law. In addition, WILIG works to promote awareness of gender in all areas of international law. WILIG sponsors panels and a luncheon at the ASIL Annual Meeting and recommends speakers and experts on a variety on international law topics. Through its online discussion forum, the Interest Group provides information on developments, programs, opportunities, and publications of interest to WILIG members. WILIG also recognizes the work of outstanding women in the field of international law with its Award for Prominent Women in International Law. These activities are coordinated by a 10-15 person Steering Committee, which meets several times per year.
Applications are currently NOT being accepted. Please check back later.
ASIL and its Women in International Law Interest Group are continuing their support for the Women in International Law Mentoring Program. Since 2013, hundred of women from Tucson to Singapore have enrolled in ASIL's mentoring program as both mentors and mentees. Click the link above for full details. The WILIG Prominent Women in International Law Award honors those who have advanced women, gender, and women's rights in international law. Since 1993, the American Society of International Law's Women in International Law Interest Group has selected awardees who:
The diverse accomplishments of previous awardees demonstrate the multiple ways in which honorees achieve this recognition. Past awardees include judges of the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Tribunals, founders of women's rights NGOs, business leaders, government officials, and scholars. These women have broken glass ceilings in the field, worked tirelessly to promote women and women's voices in international law, and contributed substantively to advancing, researching, or advocating for women's rights.
In order to nominate a prominent woman for this award, please fill in this form, and attach the relevant documents. Alternatively, you can submit letters of nomination, which should be addressed to WILIG's Prominent Woman in International Law (PWIL) Committee, to lsolano@colombiaun.org, and should not exceed 5 pages. In this case, please also submit any supporting information you wish to forward, such as the Nominee's CV, in one PDF document titled with the nominee's name and "PWIL Award".
The deadline is October 15, 2021.
Awardees: Prominent Women in International Law Award 2021: Gabrielle Kirk McDonald 2020: Judge Elizabeth Odio Benito, Inter-American Court of Human Rights 2019: Tracy Robinson, University of the West Indies Faculty of Law 2018: I. Maxine Marcus, Director, Partners in Justice International 2017: Judge Rosemary Barkett, Judge, Iran-United States Claims Tribunal 2016: Elizabeth Andersen, Executive Director, American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative 2015: Anne-Marie Slaughter, President & CEO, New America Foundation 2014: Judge Joan Donoghue, International Court of Justice Judge Julia Sebutinde, International Court of Justice Judge Xue Hanqin, International Court of Justice 2013: Diane Marie Amann, University of Georgia School of Law 2012: Mireille Delmas-Marty, Chair of Comparative Legal Studies and Internationalization of Law at College de France 2011: Lucy Reed, Partner, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer; Former President, ASIL 2010: Dinah Shelton, Commissioner, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights; Professor, George Washington University Law School 2009: Unity Dow, Justice, High Court of Botswana 2008: Graciela Dixon, Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Panama 2007: Taghreed Hikmat, Judge, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda 2006: Rosalyn Higgins, President, International Court of Justice 2005: Regan Ralph, Executive Director, Fund for Global Human Rights Kelly D. Askin, Senior Legal Officer for International Justice, Open Society Justice Initiative Lea Browning, President, W.E.A.R.E. for Human Rights 2004: Cecelia Medina, Judge, Inter-American Court of Human Rights 2003: Hauwa Ibrahim, Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow, American University Washington College of Law; Defense Counsel to Nigerian defendant Amina Lawal Sujata V. Manohar, Member, National Human Rights Commission of India; Former Judge, Supreme Court of India 2002: Patricia Wald, Former Judge, International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Marcia A. Wiss, Partner, Hogan & Hartson 2000: Ruth Lapidoth, Professor, Hebrew University Faculty of Law 1999: Patricia Viseur Sellers, Legal Advisor for Gender Related Crimes and Senior Acting Trial Attorney in the Office of the Prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda 1997: Lea Browning, Hogan & Hartson Sujata V. Manoha, Director, International Centre for Ethnic Studies Ricki Helfer, Chair, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Sonia Picado, Ambassador of Costa Rica to the United States 1996: Patricia Schroeder, Member, U.S. House of Representatives Geraldine A. Ferraro, U.S. Ambassador to the UN Human Rights Commission Edith B. Weiss, President, American Society of International Law; and Professor, Georgetown University Law Center Diane P. Wood, Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit 1995: Cynthia C. Lichtenstein, Professor, Boston College of Law Laura Bocalandro, Inter-American Development Bank Rita E. Hauser, President, The Hauser Foundation Arvonne S. Fraser, U.S. Representative, UN Commission on the Status of Women 1994: Jamie S. Gorelick, General Counsel, U. S. Department of Defense Rosalyn Higgins, Professor, London School of Economics Madeleine E. Wall, Group Director, Legal Services Cable & Wireless PLC 1993: Charlene Barshefsky, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Carol F. Lee, General Counsel, Export-Import Bank of the United States Elizabeth R. Rindskopf, General Counsel, Central Intelligence Agency Professional affiliations listed here reflect those that were current at the time the award was granted. WILIG welcomes updates or corrections to this list, as some of the awardees were unavailable for comment.
The WILIG Scholarship Prize aims to highlight and promote excellence in international law scholarship involving women and girls, gender, and feminist approaches. Although scholars have utilized gender and feminist analyses in international law for at least a quarter of a century, such approaches frequently fail to permeate the mainstream of international legal scholarship and practice. This prize, awarded every two years, recognizes innovative contributions to international law scholarship that theorize or utilize a feminist lens or lenses, highlight and seek to address topics disproportionately affecting women and girls, or consider the impact of international law or policy on gender more broadly.
Questions about the prize can be emailed to wilig@asil.org. The next WILIG Scholarship Prize will be awarded at the WILIG Luncheon at the 2023 Annual Meeting. A call for submissions will be issued in Spring 2022. Irini Papanicolopulu (inaugural awardee), Gender and the Law of the Sea (Brill, 2019) WILIG and the Harvard International Law Journal are pleased to present this special series.
 Clicking the icon in the upper corner of the video below will expand the full playlist. Group Officers Co-Chair
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Ashley Belyea
Lucia Solano Cindy Buys Meg de Guzman Kathy Roberts Lindsey Schmidt Shana Tabak
Tracy Roosevelt
Christie Edwards Clara Brillembourg Milena Sterio Nienke Grossman Tatiana Sainati (Ex Oficio) Lucila Hemmingsen (Ex Oficio) |
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