The Laws of Sovereignty: Submission #115
The Laws of Sovereignty
No concept has been subject to more legal and theoretical debates than “sovereignty”. In modern times, state sovereignty is grounded in the principle of self-determination. For sovereignty to have any meaning or significance, states must represent their peoples and reflect national consensus, supported by some degree of common aspirations. A key aspect of sovereignty is the symbolic or mythic idea of who “the people” are and their inherent connection to one another. Sovereignty has come to embody and safeguard common historical experience, political and cultural tradition and heritage that bind a nation together.
The 21st century has created circumstances that have posed new and increasingly complex challenges to sovereignty. Certain pillars of sovereignty, previously taken-for-granted, have become vulnerable. Economic globalization has created many new opportunities, but it has also led to a global “race to the bottom”. The embrace of the “Washington Consensus” by the international legal community and adjudication forums has led to an erosion of state sovereignty and economic self-determination. Digitization and the growing presence of large platform-based businesses threaten to exercise “functional sovereignty” by policing transactions, moderating speech and adjudicating disputes. Furthermore, the question of sovereignty is increasingly present in the debates around the future of Europe.
Despite these challenges, sovereignty remains a key pillar in today’s world, as it both connects and represents a community with a shared common destiny. In this vein, the international conference will explore the contemporary challenges to sovereignty, ranging from its general philosophical underpinnings to globalization, integration and digitization.
Program
09:00 – 09:30 Registration
09:30 – 09:40 Opening remarks
MCC Leadership ( TBA )
Lénárd Sándor (MCC School of Law)
09:40 – 10:00 Keynote Speech: : The Linchpin Role of Sovereignty on the 21st century
Mathieu Bock-Côté
10:00 – 10:45 Panel Discussion I From Theory to Justification: Sovereignty
Moderator:
- Buda Nedbalek (Student of MCC School of Law, TBC)
Panelists:
- David Tse-Chien Pan (University of California, Irvine)
- Jean Yarbrough (Bowdoin College)
- András Lánczi (MCC European Center for Political Philosophy)
10:45 – 11:00 Coffee Break
11:00 – 11: 45 Panel Discussion II: Sovereignty in Different Legal Cultures
Moderator:
- Réka Varga (Student of MCC School of Law)
Panelists:
- Nelson Lund (George Mason University)
- Chen, Xiaohang (Peking University Law School)
- Miscoiu Sergiu (Babes-Bolyai University)
- Deli Gergely (University of Public Service)
11:45-12:30 Panel Discussion III International Organizations and Sovereignty
Moderator:
- Gabriella Érdi (Researcher of the Center for International Law)
Panelists:
- Michael Herz (International Criminal Court)
- Allen S. Weiner (Stanford University)
- Aymeric de Lamotte (Thomas More Institution)
12:30 – 13:15 Lunch Break
13:15-14:05 Panel Discussion IV Sovereignty in Globalization: Erosion or Opportunities
Moderator:
- Lénárd Sándor (School of Law, MCC)
Panelists:
- Christopher S. Vajda (King’s Counsel, UK)
- Gus Van Harten (York University's Osgoode Hall)
- István Varga (Head Cener for Private Law, MCC)
14:05 – 14:55 Panel V Safeguarding Sovereignty in an Era of Digitization
Moderator:
- Soma Tóth-Török (Center for Modern Law Studies, MCC)
Panelists:
- Edoardo Carlo Raffiotta (University of Milan)
- Giuseppe Mazziotti (Católica Global School of Law)
- TBA (University of Public Service)
14:55 – 15:00 Concluding Remarks
Lénárd Sándor (School of Law, MCC)
15:00 – 16:00 Networking Coffee