The Law School's Center for International Studies was created to engage faculty and students in the systematic and comprehensive study of the United Nations. Its purpose is not only to advance scholarship in the area of public international law, but also to generate future staff of the United Nations Secretariat, national missions, and foreign ministries. Last year, the Conference, which was chaired by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, focused on the enforceability in domestic courts of rulings by international tribunals. This year, an extraordinary group of major officials joined NYU faculty and students to discuss administrative and expert monitoring of international legal norms. The Center provides an intensive experience for the students involved.
Fellows take courses which approach the year's topic from a set of different perspectives.
First, they must take the general international law course, which situates the United Nations in the broader body of public international law. They take a jurisprudence course which addresses the legitimacy of the international law. They take a course on the constitutional law of the United Nations, which exposes them to the fundamental charter principles guiding United Nations action. And they take a seminar specifically covering the topic chosen for the year. The papers produced by the Fellows form the basis of the annual conference on the year's topic which is attended by members of the Secretariat, other United Nations organs, and various national missions.