The Great Transformation and the Promise of International Economic Law
The Society's 114th Annual Meeting—and first Virtual Annual Meeting—took place June 25–26, 2020. The 2020 Annual Meeting theme, "The Promise of International Law," was an opportunity to reflect on the successes and failures of international law, while reaffirming our commitment to achieving its promise of a more just and peaceful world.
All sessions in this track sponsored by Dechert LLP
The postwar international economic order, symbolized by the Bretton Woods system, has recently been questioned as the Great Divergence eclipses the Great Convergence. Brexit has challenged long-held conventional wisdom on European integration. Trade wars prompted by the Trump doctrine (“America First”) have brought an existential angst to the World Trade Organization (WTO) system. At the same time, emerging economies, at the behest of China, have recently launched competitive mega projects, such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Could multilateralism survive recent massive economic nationalism? Do these developments herald the end of the conventional (Western) model of global economic governance? Is China creating a new form of international trade and economic ordering based on a web of international finance, trade, and investment initiatives? Should other actors take note and look for ways to nudge the Chinese government to play a more constructive role, and to work within the system to advance its interests? Against this captivating background, this panel seeks to revisit the conventional theme of international economic law and reflect on new ones.FEATURING
James Gathii, Loyola University Chicago School of Law (Moderator)
Daphne Hong, Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Simon Lester, Cato Institute
Cliff Manjiao, University of International Business and Economics
Eunkyung Kim Shin, Baker & McKenzie
(Speaker organizations are shown as of June 2020)