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Program on International Law and Relations in Asia

The U.S.-Asia Law Institute is a leading forum in the United States for informed debates on international law topics relevant to East Asia. We promote the study and application of international law to regional and international conflicts and disputes in Asia.  

In our teaching, research, and conferences, we apply the framework of “comparative international law” and ask whether, despite claims to universality, the rules of international law or perspectives on those rules vary among nations and regions. We inquire into whether there is an overarching “Asian perspective” or country-specific views on international legal regimes, as well as how views on particular international legal matters differ among scholars across East Asia.

The USALI Program on International Law and International Relations in Asia has four components: the USALI colloquium, international law conferences, guest speakers and Perspectives essays on topics in international law and policy.

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The USALI Colloquium on Globalization, International Law, and East Asia

The colloquium is a one-semester course designed to expose NYU Law students to a range of perspectives on international law and its application to contemporary issues in East Asia.

Professor Frank Upham

Professor Frank Upham

Each time the colloquium is taught, we bring into the classroom a different selection of leading scholars to share their works in progress on cutting-edge issues in international law of consequence to East Asian countries. Topics have included maritime disputes in East Asia, national security issues related to cyber commerce and big data, transitional justice litigation, human rights, government responses to demographic change, proposed reforms to the international trade and investment regimes, and other timely topics of concern to scholars, governments, and international civil society.

USALI Faculty Director José E. Alvarez

USALI Faculty Director José E. Alvarez

Our goal is to inspire a new generation of scholars of Asian international law while also enabling scholars of US law to become more familiar with important international legal issues in Asia. Students can expect to:

  • Work with select issues involving international law and apply them in particular settings,

  • Understand contemporary challenges to “universal international law,” particularly from the perspective of “comparative international law,”

  • Evaluate claims that there are distinct characteristics or aptitudes within select East Asian countries towards contemporary legal disputes,

  • Better understand the connections between domestic legal structures (e.g., the role of national courts) and positions taken by countries in international forums, and

  • Engage in the development of legal scholarship. 

The curriculum for the most recent USALI Colloquium can be found here.

Guest Speakers

(L-R) Bruce Aronson, Hiroyuki Nishimura, William Chou, and Jose Alvarez discussing Nippon Steel, U.S. Steel, and the implications for US-Japan Relations

USALI hosts a speaker program during the academic year. Recent talks focusing on international law and policy include:

Online Essays

Image credit: Robert Padovani

Image credit: Robert Padovani

USALI’s online essay series, USALI Perspectives, offers another platform for dialogue between the US and East Asian legal communities. The short essays are intended to be relevant and accessible to readers beyond academe. Essays published over the past twelve months that address topics in international law and relations include: 

International Law and Policy Publications

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Our faculty, affiliated scholars, and visiting scholars have published these recent works on international law and policy:

  • José E. Alvarez, “Can International Investment Agreement Advance the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals?,” in The African Renaissance in the Age of Globalization: What Role for International Investment Law? (Cambridge University Press 2026).

  • José E. Alvarez, “What is to be Done?,” 39 Temple International and Comparative Law Journal, Issue 2 (2026).

  • José E. Alvarez, “The Future of Human Rights,” Foreign Policy Association, Great Decisions, 2026 edition.

  • José E. Alvarez, “Introduction: Why Should We Care About IO Initiatives in Response to Needs?,” in IO Initiatives: How and Why Organisations Adapt to Changes (Oxford University Press 2025).

  • José E. Alvarez, Women’s Property Rights Under CEDAW (with Judith Bauder) (Oxford University Press 2024).

  • Bruce Aronson & Manabu Matsunaka, “Designing a New Framework to Regulate Hostile Takeovers in a Changing Japan,” 20 University of Pennsylvania Asian Law Review 518 (2025).

  • Bruce Aronson, “Overview,” in “Symposium on Nippon Steel and the New Era in US-Japan Economic Relations,” USALI East-West Studies 3, No. 1 (July 8, 2025).

  • Bruce Aronson & Manabu Matsunaka, “Legal System Issues concerning Australia's Takeover Panel and Hostile Takeovers in Japan,” 2393 Shoji Homu, June 15, 2025. (In Japanese)

  • Bruce Aronson, “The Toshiba Case Seen from Abroad--Corporate Governance Lessons,” Marr Online, Jan. 5, 2025.

  • Bruce E. Aronson & Manabu Matsunaka, “Designing a New Framework to Regulate Hostile Takeovers in a Changing Japan,” European Corporate Governance Institute - Law Research Paper Series, July 2, 2024.

  • Jerome A. Cohen, Eastward, Westward: A Life in Law (Columbia University Press 2025).

International Law Conferences

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USALI hosts high-profile conferences on international law topics of broad interest to both governments and academics that deserve in-depth attention.

The most recent USALI international law conference was held online from Nov. 2-4, 2022 on the topic “Toward a Human Right to Claim Innocence.” USALI partnered with the Innocence Network and Duke University School of Law (the Wilson Center for Science and Justice and the Center for International and Comparative Law) to organize the conference, which had three panels:

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Maritime Dispute Resolution Project

Since 2018, USALI has been conducting research into interstate maritime disputes in order to better understand the circumstances that facilitate the successful resolution of disputes and contentious issues. To date, we have examined 19 cases that have been resolved through adjudication, arbitration, negotiation, or conciliation. Our aim is to distill lessons for governments.

More information about the project, case studies, and a research report can be found here.