International Organizations and Multinational Institutions

International Organizations are a core component of International Law and as such they have been mechanisms for the establishment of standards for international law and cooperation in our increasingly interdependent world. International Organizations are responsible for the creation of rules that govern globalization. In the twenty-first century such norm creation is a worldwide imperative since the scope of governance goes beyond state boundaries seeking to solve global problems, such as climate change and global resources management. The creation of global rules, the management of the established international norms and adjudication in cases of conflict beyond national borders have expanded areas of practice for lawyers. While new International Organizations have been established also States have to deal with them not only from their Foreign Affairs Ministries, but from almost every branch of their administration. Likewise, private sector associations and non-governmental organizations can raise issues and present their viewpoints before International Organizations through hearings or inspection panels. Finally, individuals are directly subject to international law, particularly in the field of human rights and they can bring their cases before International Organizations. In all these different scenarios lawyers have to assume new roles in advising and representing public and private actors as well as administering global sets of rules in different fields. To gain an appreciation of the Law of International Organizations, we recommend that you take several Foundational courses. Then, you may wish to choose one or more subfields in the different areas of international law offered by WCL There are thus different subsets of key electives that will vary according to your chosen areas of special interest. Experiential courses will be important to give you direct knowledge and skills for legal multilateral work. We also list related courses that will be relevant based on your areas of interest.