Category Archives: International Law

The European Fuel Quality Directive: Will It Slay or Will It Go?

By: Matthew Ducharme

PDF Version: The European Fuel Quality Directive: Will It Stay or Will it Go? 

Document Commented On: Draft Implementing Measure to the European Union Fuel Quality Directive, February 23, 2012

On February 23, 2012, a European Union (EU) drafting committee voted on a draft law that discriminates against bitumen. This was the Draft Implementing Measure to the European Union Fuel Quality Directive (Implementing Measure). The Canadian press reported the vote ended in a stalemate. The press also noted that the law would be reconsidered in the late spring or early summer (National Post; CBC; Globe and Mail).

If the EU enacts the law it will have made a step in its fight against climate change, but the market for bitumen may be negatively impacted. If the law dies, Canada can expect a higher price on the sale of its bitumen in overseas markets. This note examines the February 23 vote within the EU law making process.

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State Responsibility for Protection against Domestic Violence: The Case of Jessica Lenahan (Gonzales)

PDF version: State Responsibility for Protection against Domestic Violence: The Case of Jessica Lenahan (Gonzales) 

Case considered: Jessica Lenahan (Gonzales) et al v United States, Case 12.626, Report No. 80/11 (Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, August 17, 2011)

On August 17, 2011, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) released its merits report in the case of Jessica Lenahan (Gonzales) and the United States. The case concerns states’ positive obligations to use due diligence in responding to situations of domestic violence, and is the first such case involving the U.S. to be considered by the IACHR. In what many are calling a landmark decision, the IACHR found that the United States had breached several Articles of the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man in relation to its obligations to Lenahan and her children. This post will summarize the IACHR decision and analyze the implications of the case in Canada, particularly in provinces such as Alberta which have civil domestic violence legislation.

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Why Canada should Address Jorge Vinicio Orantes Sosa’s Alleged War Crimes before Extraditing Him to the U.S.

PDF version: Why Canada should Address Jorge Vinicio Orantes Sosa’s Alleged War Crimes before Extraditing Him to the U.S. 

This summer, Jorge Vinicio Orantes Sosa will fight extradition from Alberta to California to face immigration charges. Chief Justice Wittman will preside over the extradition hearing which been set to take place from August 16 to 17, 2011 at the Court of Queen’s Bench. This article suggests why Jorge Vinicio Orantes Sosa should have been first charged and tried in Canada for his alleged participation in war crimes during the Guatemalan civil conflict, before being extradited on lesser immigration charges. Continue reading →

Interim Report on Violence Against Aboriginal Women Released

PDF version: Interim Report on Violence Against Aboriginal Women Released

Report Commented on: House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women Interim Report, Call Into The Night: An Overview of Violence Against Aboriginal Women

Just before the House of Commons was dissolved for the election, the House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women tabled its Interim Report, Call Into The Night: An Overview of Violence Against Aboriginal Women. In a news release, the Honourable Hedy Fry, Chair of the Committee, stated as follows: “It is rare that an all party Committee displays such unanimity, urgency and passion in getting its message out. All members were so astounded and overwhelmed by the systemic, institutionalised nature of the violence against Aboriginal women that we wanted to make sure, this time, that their voices will be heard; that their cries for help and the hope which these hopeless and desperate women had placed in us was not lost because of an election call.” I blogged on the Committee’s Edmonton hearing back in January, focusing on the lack of attention the study was receiving in the media. The silence around violence against Aboriginal women is also identified as a major issue in the Committee’s Interim Report (at 3-4).

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CCS and CDM: The Eligibility of Carbon Capture and Storage Projects under the Clean Development Mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol – the Cancun Meeting of the Conference of the Parties

By: Nigel Bankes

PDF Version: CCS and CDM: The Eligibility of Carbon Capture and Storage Projects under the Clean Development Mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol – the Cancun Meeting of the Conference of the Parties

Decision Commented On: UNFCCC, Kyoto Protocol, CoP\MoP Decision on “Carbon dioxide capture and storage in geological formations as clean development mechanism project activities”

The 16th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the 7th Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (KP) (CoP\MoP) concluded last week in Cancun. In the assessment of most observers this was a successful meeting but perhaps only because expectations were modest and anything seemed liked progress after the Copenhagen debacle of last year. But there is still much that remains to be done before countries can agree on a successor to the first commitment period of the KP which expires in 2012. Without such agreement the KP will simply die. Some, especially Europe, but also developing countries, want to see a second commitment period. But others, like Canada, point to the lack of inclusiveness of the KP (to say nothing of our own non-compliance which would result in a penalty on Canada during any second commitment period) and want to see an alternative to the KP that imposes emissions reduction obligations not only on the United States (not a party to the KP) but also on the so-called BRIC countries (Brazil, India, China) as well as other developing countries.

The Meeting did make progress on number of larger matters including REDD+ (reduced emissions from deforestation and forest degradation) and on the narrower issue of the eligibility of carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects under the clean development mechanism (CDM) of the KP. The purpose of this note is to provide an update on that debate.

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