Introduction to 'The International Legal Order and the Global Pandemic'

Abstract

This is an introduction to an Agora on “The International Legal Order and the Global Pandemic,” which will be published in the October 2020 issue of the American Journal of International Law. It provides an overview of thirteen essays selected in response to a worldwide call for papers. The essays consider some of the most pressing challenges, as well as potential opportunities, that COVID-19 is creating for the international legal order. The specific subjects addressed include the role of international organizations such as the World Health Organization, state responsibility, human rights, financial regulation, and international trade. Contributors were invited to address the Agora theme from a historical, institutional, doctrinal, normative, critical, or geopolitical perspective, or a mix of perspectives. The Agora features a diverse set of contributions in terms of subject matter, methodology, and the gender, ethnicity, and geographic location of the authors.

Keywords: pandemic, COVID-19, international law, world health organization, human rights