Vrije Universiteit Brussel

 
 

1. Contact address

Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Faculty of Law and Criminology
Room 4.B.341
Pleinlaan 2
B-1050 Brussels
Belgium
Tel.: (+32) (0)2/629.36.79
Fax: (+32) (0)2/629.26.37
E-mail: mbenatar@vub.ac.be

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2. Education

New York University School of Law (NYU)
LL.M. (International Legal Studies), 2008

Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB)
Lic. Juris (Public Law), magna cum laude, 2007
Cand. Juris, magna cum laude, 2004

Erasmus Program, Autonomous University of Barcelona, 2006-07

The Hague Academy of International Law
Summer Program in Public International Law, 2006

 

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3. Professional career

Vrije Universiteit Brussel – Department of International and European Law
Ph.D. Fellow (Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO)), October 2010 – Present
Teaching & Research Assistant, May 2009 – September 2010

Brussels School of International Studies – University of Kent
Co-Lecturer, Fall 2009 – Fall 2010

Magna Carta Institute – Human Rights Network International
Research Assistant, October – December 2008

International Society for Military Law and the Law of War
Intern, September 2008

Francis Maupain – Special Adviser to the Director-General and Former Legal Adviser of the International Labour Organization
External Collaborator, August – November 2008

Professor Alain Pellet – Special Rapporteur on Reservations to Treaties and Former President of the United Nations International Law Commission
Research Assistant, May 2008 – August 2008

Council of State of Belgium – Legislation Section
Intern, July 2007

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP – Brussels Office
Summer Associate, July 2006

 

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4. Other activities

Book Review Editor, Wereldbeeld (United Nations Association Flanders), 2011 – Present

Editorial Assistant, The Military Law and the Law of War Review, 2008 – Present

Faculty Coach, Concours de procès simulé en droit international Charles-Rousseau (2009 – 2011) & Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition (2010)

Consultancy for the Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications (study on certain international legal aspects of the Universal Postal Union), 2009-10

Jury member, International Law Competition “Youth for Peace”, International Institute of Labour and Social Relations, Minsk, Belarus, 18-22 May 2010

Graduate Editor, NYU Journal of International Law and Politics, 2007-08

Committee Co-Chair for EU Law, NYU Guide to Foreign and International Legal Citation, 2007-08

Research Associateship Program, NYU, 2007-08

Co-Organizer, VUB Moot Court, 2006-07

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5. Fellowships and awards

Ph.D. Fellow, Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO), 2010 – Present

Essay Prize, Belgian Society of International Law, 2010

Essay Prize, Goettingen Journal of International Law, 2009

International Law and Human Rights Student Fellow, NYU, 2008

Dean’s Graduate Award, NYU, 2007-08

Honorary Scholar, Fulbright Program, 2007-08

Fellow, Belgian American Educational Foundation, 2007-08

Fellow, Francqui Foundation, 2007-08

Essay Prize, Algemene Praktische Rechtsverzameling, 2006-07

Finalist, Netherlands-Flanders Moot Court, 2006

Diplomacy Award, Model United Nations Flanders, 2005

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6. Publications

Book chapters

Wereldpostunie (UPU)”, in C. Ryngaert (ed.), De Gespecialiseerde Organisaties van de Verenigde Naties, Leuven/The Hague, Acco, 2011, pp. 75-83 [also in: C. Ryngaert (ed.), De Gespecialiseerde Instellingen van de Verenigde Naties, Ghent, Vereniging voor de Verenigde Naties, 2011, pp. 84-97] (with C. Janssens)

Articles

“Dots and Lines in the South China Sea: Insights from the Law of Map Evidence”, Asian Journal of International Law, vol. 2, nr. 1, 2012 (with E. Franckx) (forthcoming)

“The Naming of Maritime Features Viewed from an International Law Perspective”, China Oceans Law Review, vol. 11, nr. 1, 2011, pp. 1-40 (with E. Franckx, N. Joe & K. Van den Bossche) [in Chinese: pp. 41-69; an earlier version appeared in: Sungjae Choo (ed.), Proceedings of the 16th International Seminar on Sea Names (20-22 August 2010, The Hague, The Netherlands) 2010, pp. 95-130, available at http://geo.khu.ac.kr/seanames/index.asp]

“The Belgian Approach to Maritime Piracy in an International Context”, NATO Legal Gazette, no. 22, 2010, pp. 2-7 (with A. Vanheusden & F. Naert)

“The Use of Cyber Force: Need for Legal Justification?”, Goettingen Journal of International Law, vol. 1, nr. 3, 2009, pp. 375-396

Book reviews

“David L. Bosco, Five to Rule Them All: The UN Security Council and the Making of the Modern World”, Wereldbeeld, nr. 2, 2011, pp. 54-56

“Benedetto Conforti & Carlo Focarelli, The Law and Practice of the United Nations”, Wereldbeeld, nr. 1, 2011, pp. 54-56

“Robert Kolb, An Introduction to the Law of the United Nations”, Wereldbeeld, nr. 1, 2011, pp. 54-56

“Yoram Dinstein, The International Law of Belligerent Occupation”, The Military Law and the Law of War Review, vol. 48, 2009, pp. 499-503

“Erik Koppe, The Use of Nuclear Weapons and the Protection of the Environment during International Armed Conflict”, The Military Law and the Law of War Review, vol. 47, nr. 3-4, 2008, pp. 492-495

Other

“The Pre-emptive and Preventive Use of Force in Response to the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction – Workshop Report/L’usage préemptif et préventif de la force en réponse à la prolifération des armes de destruction massive”, The Military Law and the Law of War Review, vol. 49, nr. 1-2, 2010, pp. 205-223 (with S. Ristich & J. Lo Jacono)

Vrije Universiteit Brussel – Centre for International Law, Legal Aspects of the Universal Postal Union’s Status as a United Nations Specialized Agency and its Extrabudgetary Activities (study commissioned by the Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunications; presented by Belgium to the UPU Council of Administration on 13 April 2010), UPU/CA.C1.RUPG 2010.1-Docs 5b, 6

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7. Presentations

“Cyber Sanctions: Exploring a Blind Spot in the Current Legal Debate”, International Law and Power Politics: Great Powers, Peripheries and Claims to Spheres of Influence in International Normative Order, 4th European Society of International Law Research Forum, Tallinn, Estonia, 27-28 May 2011

“Dotted Lines in the South China Sea: Fishing for (Legal) Clarity”, The South China Sea: Cooperation for Regional Security and Development, Second International Workshop, Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam/Vietnam Lawyers Association, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, 10-12 November 2010 (with E. Franckx)

“Jus Ad Bellum Aspects of Computer Network Attacks”, Conference on Information Technologies and Modern Armed Conflicts, International Institute of Labour and Social Relations, Minsk, Belarus, 17 May 2010

“The Notion of ‘Comparative International Law’: Some Definitional and Methodological Thoughts”, Concerning States of Mind, Disturbing the Minds of States, 3rd Annual Conference of the Toronto Group for the Study of International, Transnational, and Comparative Law, University of Toronto Faculty of Law/Osgoode Hall Law School, Toronto, Canada, 29-31 January 2010

“Operation Atalanta: the European Approach to Fighting Piracy”, Conference on Controlling Maritime Piracy, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA, 10-12 December 2009 (with E. Franckx)

“The Relationship between Domestic and International Law, with Particular Reference to Belgium”, Judicial Decisions and Statutory Interpretation: An International Workshop, The Protection Project (Johns Hopkins University)/Ghent University/Mofid University, Ghent, Belgium, 29-30 October 2009

Co-Rapporteur, The Pre-emptive and Preventive Use of Force in Response to the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction, International Society for Military Law and the Law of War/NATO Headquarters, Royal Military Academy, Brussels, Belgium, 27 October 2009

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8. Research Interests

International Law

Legal Theory

Comparative Law

International Relations

 

 

©2004 • Vrije Universiteit Brussel • Pleinlaan 2 • 1050 Brussels• Tel.: 0032(2)629.12.60• iere@vub.ac.be