Five Masters of International Law

Antonio Cassese is an international lawyer who has combined a career as a university professor with membership of important UN bodies, and, latterly, membership of several international tribunals. Most recently (1993-2000) he was a judge and President (1993-1997) of the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, Chairman of the UN International Commission of Inquiry into Crimes in Darfur (Sudan), Independent Expert appointed by the UN Secretary-General to review the efficiency of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, and, since March 2009, Judge and President of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

This book...filled me with admiration. It is so typical of certain features of Nino's character, especially his intellectual curiosity and his modesty. Nino, himself a great master of international law, felt the need to interview five masters of international law. It is also highly significant that he emphasizes and praises the human qualities of the interviewees, which were also his own, such as simplicity, affability, gentleness, urbanity, esprit de finesse and witty irony.Each interview makes for lively and interesting reading: one grasps the rich and different personalities of the interviewees...In spite and beyond their differences, they present important common features. All of them embraced legal positivism, though to varying degrees.

• Basic Questionnaire René-Jean Dupuy Interview with René-Jean Dupuy: June 1993 I. The Formative Years II. Encounters with Other International LawyersIII. The Role of the Jurist as Scholar and Practitioner IV. A Look at the International Community V. The Jurist and Global Reality Eduardo Jiménez de Aréchaga Interview with Eduardo Jiménez de Aréchaga: November 1993 I. The Role of Legal Scholarship at the Start of Judge de Aréchaga's Scholarly Activity II. Meeting Other International Lawyers III. Jiménez de Aréchaga's Academic and Political Career IV. Thoughts About the International Community V. The Jurist and Global Reality Sir Robert Jennings Interview with Sir Robert Jennings: October 1994 I. The Beginning as a Scholar II. Encounters with Other Scholars III. The Role of the Jurist as Scholar and Practitioner IV. A Look at the International Community V. The Jurist and Global Reality Louis Henkin Interview with Louis Henkin: February 1995 I. The Formative Years II. Encounters with Other International Lawyers III. The Role of the Jurist as Scholar and Practitioner IV. A Look at the International Community V. Some Personal Questions Oscar Schachter Interview with Oscar Schachter: February 1995 I. The Beginning as a Scholar II. The Policy-Science Approach versus the Strictly Legal Approach III. Encounters with Other International Lawyers IV. The Theoretical Approach to International Law V. The Role of the Jurist as Scholar and Practitioner VI. A Look at the International Community VII. The Jurist and Global Reality Final Remarks By Way of Conclusion I. On the Limits of my Attempt to Highlight the Main Points of the Interviews II. Basic Commonalities III. The European Kernel in the Education of the Interviewees IV. Legal Positivism V. Scholar versus Practitioner VI. Political Involvement VII. The Evils of the Current International Community VIII. The Outlook for the World Community IX. Personal Matters X. Final Observations