Dean for Medway (and Kent Law School professor) Nick Grief was invited to share his research expertise with investors across Australia and New Zealand this week for a webinar cautioning against investment in controversial weapons.<\/p>\n
The Controversial Weapons Webinar was organised by CAER<\/a> (an agency offering responsible investment research services in Australia and New Zealand) and the Responsible Investment Association Australasia<\/a> (a regional social investment forum). It was facilitated by Simon O\u2019Connor from RIAA.<\/p>\n Professor Grief began the hour-long webinar by\u00a0outlining the treaty and international humanitarian law framework regarding controversial weapons. The other\u00a0speaker was David Cockburn, Head of Specialised Research at Vigeo Eiris, a global provider of Environmental, Social and Governance research and services to investors and private, public and non-profit organisations.<\/p>\n Professor Grief said: \u2018One highly topical issue is whether investing in companies that manufacture cluster munitions is illegal under the Cluster Munitions Convention 2008. Article 1(1) of the Convention provides:\u00a0‘Each State Party undertakes never in any circumstances to (a) Use cluster munitions; (b) Develop, produce, otherwise acquire, stockpile, retain or transfer to anyone, directly or indirectly, cluster munitions;\u00a0(c) Assist, encourage or induce anyone to engage in any activity prohibited to a State Party under this Convention.’\u00a0<\/em>I expressed the view that if we interpret the Convention in good faith in accordance with the ordinary meaning of its terms in their context and in the light of its object and purpose, as required by the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties 1969, there is a compelling argument that the term ‘assist’ in Article 1(1)(c) includes such indirect financing.\u2019<\/p>\n Earlier this month, Professor Grief chaired a colloquium at Kent\u2019s centre in Brussels that discussed the future of the UK\u2019s relationship with the EU, with particular reference to energy, digital technology and competition. The Brussels colloquium, entitled \u2018New bi-lateralism? \u2018Prospectives\u2019 for future UK-EU relations\u2019, was attended by 35 delegates from industry, academia and diplomatic missions.<\/p>\n Speakers included Professor Richard Whitman, Head of Kent\u2019s School of Politics and International Relations (and Director of the Global Europe Centre); David Powell, Head of the Office of the Vice-Chancellor at Kent and former British ambassador to Norway; Leonard Hawkes, Solicitor (Juriste Conseil) at DBB Law in Brussels (and Kent Law School alumnus); John Higgins CBE, Director General of DIGITALEUROPE (which represents the digital technology industry in Europe); and Joanna Goyder, Senior Knowledge Lawyer at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in Brussels.<\/p>\n Professor Grief<\/a>\u00a0teaches Public International Law and EU Law at Kent Law School. His research interests include air and space law and the domestic implications of international law. He has further interests in human rights, especially the right to protest, conscientious objection to the payment of taxes for military purposes and the use of international law by protesters in UK courts.<\/p>\n In March last year Professor Grief, who also practises at the Bar from Doughty Street Chambers, was a member of a legal team nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize<\/a> for its work at the International Court of Justice. The team represented the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) in nuclear disarmament cases against India, Pakistan and the UK. The RMI alleged that each State was failing to comply with its obligation under international law to pursue in good faith and conclude negotiations for the worldwide elimination of nuclear weapons.<\/p>\n