University of Tartu Summer School on International Law
University of Tartu Summer School on International Law (until 2021 Martens Summer School on International Law) takes traditionally place at the end of each July at the premises of University of Tartu Pärnu College. The tenth summer school will take place on 25-29 July 2022.
The application is now closed. Please contact intlawsummerschool@ut.ee.
Take a look at the programme below.
10th University of Tartu Summer School on International Law
25-29 July 2022. Application process starts 1st of February 2022. The deadline of applications is 25 May 2022 and successful applicants will be informed by 5 June 2022. The administrative fee for the summer university is 50 EUR. Hostel acommodation in double rooms is available for the price of 150 EUR per five days of the summer school.
Professors:
- Dr Veronika Bilkova, University of Prague, "Terrorism in the Context of International Law and Human Rights"
- Dr Sergey Sayapin, KIMEP University (Almaty), "International Criminal Court and the Development of International Criminal Law"
- Prof Peter-Tobias Stoll, University of Göttingen, "Global Warming and International Law"
- Prof Tom Ruys, Ghent University, "UN Charter and Controversies Over the Use of Military Force"
Celebrating the 10th year of the summer school, a public outreach event in the Estonian language will take place in Pärnu library 25 July 2022, on ’The War in Ukraine and International Law" with Professor Lauri Mälksoo and Associated Professor René Värk (both University of Tartu) discussing. On Monday, there will also be a reception to all participants of the summer school offered by the city of Pärnu.
University of Tartu Summer School on International Law deals with comparative aspects of international law and human rights, particularly focusing on the issues related to Eurasia and Eastern Europe.
The programme is curated by Lauri Mälksoo, Professor of International Law at the University of Tartu.
University of Tartu Summer School on International Law is aimed for MA students, advanced undergraduate students and professionals. The programme awards 2 ECTS with the option of 4 ECTS in case the student submits an individual research paper.
Until 2021 the University of Tartu Summer School on International Law was named Martens Summer School. It was named after the famous Russian international law scholar, a Professor of the St. Petersburg University Friedrich Martens who was born in Pärnu in 1845. His high-profile professional career inspired an internationally acclaimed novel, “Professor Martens’ Departure“ by the Estonian writer Jaan Kross (1984).
Since 2016, the University of Tartu Summer School on International Law is sponsored by the Estonian American Fund.
Additional information: intlawsummerschool@ut.ee
Visit University of Tartu Summer School on International Law Facebook page for the latest updates.
Previous International Law Summer Schools
9th Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: Zoom
Time: 26-30 July 2021
Level: advanced undergraduate, MA and doctoral students, legal practitioners and other professionals with relevant experience and interest (approximately 25-30 students will be selected)
Lecturers and topics:
- Professor Mykola Gnatovsky (Institute of International Relations; Taras Shevchenko National University, Kyiv) “The Prohibition of Torture in International Human Rights Law: Insights from Theory and Practice”
- Judge Iulia Motoc (European Court of Human Rights) “Landmarks in the Recent Case Law of the European Court of Human Rights”
- Professor Alex G. Oude Elferink (Director of the Netherlands Institute of the Law of the Sea (NILOS); Professor of the International Law of the Sea; Utrecht University) “The Law of the Sea and Polar Regions”
- Dr Martins Paparinskis (Reader in Public International Law, University College London/UCL) “The Fundamentals of Investor-State Arbitration”
The Annual Public Lecture will be given by Dr Alexander Lott (University of Tartu; Norwegian Centre for the Law of the Sea) on 26 July 2021 on the theme “Hybrid Threats and the Law of the Sea".
8th Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: University of Tartu, Pärnu College (Ringi 35, Pärnu, Estonia)
Time: July 29 – August 2, 2019
Level: advanced undergraduate, MA students and professionals (approximately 25-30 students)
Lecturers and topics:
- Kanstantsin Dzehtsiarou, Senior Lecturer at the School of Law and Social Justice, University of Liverpool; UK. “The Impact of the European Court of Human Rights in Europe”
- Randall Lesaffer, Professor of Legal History at Tilburg Law School; The Netherlands. “International Law at the End of the Cold War: Selected Case Studies”
- Inger Österdahl, Professor of International Law at the University of Uppsala; Sweden. “European Union as Actor in International Law”
- Paul B. Stephan, Professor of Law; University of Virginia School of Law; U.S.A. “Soviet and Russian Approaches to International Law: Breaks and Continuities”
The Annual Public Lecture will be held by Hent-Raul Kalmo (Marie Curie Fellow at the University of Tartu School of Law) on 29 July 2019 at 17:00-18:00 in the Pärnu City Library and will address the theme of “State Sovereignty – Still the Foundational Principle of International Law?”.
7th Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: University of Tartu, Pärnu College (Ringi 35, Pärnu, Estonia)
Time: July 23 - July 27, 2018
Topic: International comparative law and international law related to the UN in connection with Estonia’s candidacy to the UN Security Council
Lecturers and topics:
- Gleb Bogush, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law of Moscow State University. "International Criminal Court and the Definitions of Core Crimes in International Law"
- Nico Schrijver, Council of State, the Netherlands; Professor of International Law at the University of Leiden. "United Nations Security Council and the Regulation of the Use of Force in International Law"
- Erika de Wet, Professor of International Constitutional Law at the University of Pretoria, South Africa. "Intervention by Invitation: International Law and Practice"
- Rüdiger Wolfrum, Max Planck Foundation for International Peace and the Rule of Law (Heidelberg). "UN Security Council's Decisions Affecting Individuals: Construction, Limits and Judicial Control”
The Annual Public Lecture was held by Margus Kolga (Estonian MFA; former Estonian Ambassador at the UN). "United Nations Security Council and Small States"
6th Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: University of Tartu, Pärnu College (Ringi 35, Pärnu, Estonia)
Time: July 24 - July 28, 2017
Lecturers and topics:
- Professor Laurence Boisson de Chazournes (Faculty of Law of the University of Geneva) “Dispute Settlement in International Law: Views from Practice and Theory”
- Professor William E. Butler (John Edward Fowler Distinguished Professor of Law at Pennsylvania State University) „Russia and Comparative International Law: Historical Perspectives“
- Dr Rain Liivoja (Senior Lecturer and Branco Weiss Fellow at Melbourne Law School) “Contemporary Challenges in the Law of Armed Conflict”
- Dr Ilia Rachkov (Partner at King & Spalding LLP, Moscow; Adjunct Professor at International Law Chair, Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO-University) “Russian Practice and Theory in International Investment Law"
The Annual Public Lecture was held by Dr Merilin Kiviorg (University of Tartu) on the topic of of “Freedom of Religion: An Endangered Species of Human Rights?“.
5th Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: University of Tartu, Pärnu College (Ringi 35, Pärnu, Estonia)
Time: July 25 - July 29, 2016
Lecturers and topics:
- Bruno Simma, Judge at the Iran-US Claims Tribunal and formerly Judge at the ICJ
- David P. Stewart from Georgetown University in the US
- Vladislav Starzhenetskyi from Higher School of Economics in Moscow
- Jarna Petman from the Faculty of Law of the University of Helsinki
Annual public lecture was held by University of Tartu's associate professor René Värk, on the topic of "Hybrid Warfare and International Law".
4th Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: University of Tartu, Pärnu College (Ringi 35, Pärnu, Estonia)
Time: July 26 - July 31, 2015
Lecturers and topics:
- Ineta Ziemele, judge at the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia and formerly judge at the European Court of Human Rights.
- Professor Alexander Trunk and Dr Marina Trunk Fedorova, two leading Western experts on international economic law related to Eurasia.
- Kirill Koroteev, lawyer at Moscow’s NGO Memorial and an active litigator at the European Court of Human Rights.
The course director, Professor Lauri Mälksoo from the Faculty of Law of the University of Tartu made a presentation on international law aspects of the annexation of Crimea and military conflict in Ukraine.
3rd Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: University of Tartu, Pärnu College (Ringi 35, Pärnu, Estonia)
Time: July 27 - August 1, 2014
Topic: Comparative aspects of international law and human rights, particularly focusing on the issues related to Russia and Eastern Europe
Lecturers and topics:
- Professor Erik Franckx (Vrije Universiteit Brussel) "The Soviet and Russian Approaches to the Law of the Sea”
- Professor Vera Rusinova (Higher School of Economics, Moscow), "The Interrelationship between Human Rights Law and Humanitarian Law"
- Professor William B. Simons (University of Tartu), "Public and Private: Fundamental Rights and Property. Where is Russia?”
- Professor emeritus Christian Tomuschat (Humboldt University Berlin); Member of the Institut de droit international, "Are Human Rights Universal? Perspectives from Theory and Practice of International Law"
The Annual Lecture was held by Professor Lauri Mälksoo (University of Tartu) on the topic of “Russian Approaches to International Law”.
2nd Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: University of Tartu, Pärnu College (Ringi 35, Pärnu, Estonia)
Time: July 28 - August 2, 2013
Topic: Comparative aspects of international law and human rights, particularly focusing on the issues related to Russia and Eastern Europe
Lecturers and topics:
- Professor Bill Bowring (Birkbeck College, London) “Litigating Russian Cases in the European Court of Human Rights”
- Professor Eduard Ivanov (Higher School of Economics, Moscow), “International Law and the Problem of Terrorism”
- Judge Angelika Nußberger (European Court of Human Rights, Strasbourg), “The Protection of Social and Economic Rights in Europe”
- Associate Professor René Värk (University of Tartu), “Challenges and Developments in International Humanitarian Law”
- Associate Professor Christoph Schewe (University of Latvia) “Russia in International Trade Law”
The Annual Lecture was held by Professor Lauri Mälksoo (University of Tartu) on the topic of the life and work of F. F. Martens.
1st Martens Summer School on International Law
Location: University of Tartu, Pärnu College (Ringi 35, Pärnu, Estonia)
Time: July 29 - August 3, 2012
Topic: International Law and Human Rights in Russia
Lecturers and topics:
- “Human Rights in Russian Courts – an NGO Perspective“ (Dr Anton Burkov, Yekaterinburg; NGO „Sutyazhnik“)
- “ European Convention on Human Rights and Russia (Case-law of the European Court of Human Rights: A Judge’s View) (Judge Anatoly Kovler, European Court of Human Rights)
- “The History of International Law and Human Rights in Russia – a Key to Understanding Today’s Debates“ (Professor Lauri Mälksoo, University of Tartu)
- “The Place of International Law in Russia’s Legal System: Doctrine and Practice“ (Professor Sergei Marochkin, Tyumen State University)
