XIIIth Seminar for Legal Advisors of the Armed Forces

The International Society for Military Law and the Law of War (ISMLLW) will conduct its 13th Seminar for Legal Advisors of the Armed Forces at the U.S. Military Academy in 2023. The central theme of this year’s Seminar is “Fault Lines in the Laws of War.” The ISMLLW event will examine fault lines in the laws that govern both international and non-international armed conflicts. These fault lines may appear as disagreements between States regarding the content, interpretation, or application of the relevant rules or simply as uncertainty regarding their content. They can hamper joint and combined operations, lead to operational indecision, or hinder consensus condemnation of unlawful behavior. States may even exploit these “grey zones” in the law to secure strategic or operational advantage or to split alliances.

The Seminar will bring together legal advisors and academics to discuss law of war fault lines. The event is intended to allow participants to find common ground that can serve to minimize the impact of potential fault lines. The discussions will help participants better understand the views of other States and assess the consequences of differences. This should enable participants to optimize their operations and decisions in the face of disagreement or uncertainty.