Lepard Teaches Course at Brazilian Law School on “Hot Topics in International Law”

05 Oct 2018    

In July and August of this year Professor Brian Lepard taught a one-week course entitled “Hot Topics in International Law” at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (“UFRGS”) in Porto Alegre, Brazil.  About 30 students participated in the course. Professor Lepard is the Harold W. Conroy Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Nebraska College of Law and a recognized expert on international and comparative law.

Topics discussed in the course included the regulation of war and the pursuit of peace; the legality of the threat or use of nuclear weapons; the legality of the threat or use of chemical weapons; the protection of civilians in armed conflict; the prosecution of war criminals by international criminal tribunals; the responsibility to protect victims of mass atrocities; the protection of the human rights of minorities; the protection of the rights of refugees and asylum-seekers; the legality of hate speech; the prevention of global warming and the protection of the environment; the legal implications of tariffs and trade wars in the global economic system; and growing skepticism about international organizations.

Here is a photo of the students proudly holding their course certificates, along with Professor Lepard and Professor Claudia Lima Marques of UFRGS, who helped organize the course: