Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Prof. Dr. Christian Marxsen

News – Chair of Public Law and Public International Law

 

Book Conversation: Russia, the Soviet Union, and Imperial Continuity in International Law on Monday, 15 June 2026

 

Venue: Unter den Linden 9, Room 213, Faculty of Law, Humboldt University of Berlin

Time: 18:15 – 19:45 pm

 

Russia has always played a paramount role in international law. The Tsarist Empire, the Soviet Union and the modern-day Russian Federation have both shaped international law and used it in various ways. In his newest book, Russia, the Soviet Union, and Imperial Continuity in International Law (Oxford University Press), Lauri Mälksoo presents the history of international law in Russia from the perspective of its imperial doctrines and practices.

 

Starting from the sixteenth century and including the current war in Ukraine, the book discusses key Russian international lawyers and their arguments against the backdrop of the Russian and Soviet history and territorial expansions. The book maps the history of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union in the context of international legal arguments and ideas which facilitated the continuity of the Russian Empire. By doing so, the book offers a new account of the global history of imperialism in international law by which imperialism is not tied primarily to West European Empires.

 

In light of the imperial visions advanced by Vladimir Putin, Russian aggression against its neighbours and its accompanying use of international legal arguments, we look forward to discussing the topics of the book with the author and distinguished guests, including from international legal practice.

 

Panellists

Professor Lauri Mälksoo (University of Tartu)

Dr. Matthias Hartwig (Max Planck Institute Heidelberg)

Dr. Wiebke Rückert (Federal Foreign Office)

 

You can find more information about the book here: https://academic.oup.com/book/61432.

 

Convener

Professor Christian Marxsen

 

Contact

Chair of Public Law and Public International Law, international.law@hu-berlin.de

 

Apply for the HU's Jessup Moot Court Team 2026/27

 

Want to argue a case before the International Court of Justice?

Apply for the 2026/2027 Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition!

What is the Jessup? The world's largest and most prestigious moot court competition in international law. Participants represent a fictitious State in a contentious case before the International Court of Justice.

How does it work? You will work in a team of four students and compete against more than 20 German universities for a place in the International Rounds in Washington, D.C. in March/April 2027. You will develop your legal research, writing, and oral advocacy skills while representing HU Berlin on an international stage.

This year's topics: 1. Gender Apartheid, 2. Mass Migration, 3. AI-Generated Sanctions Designations, 4. A Coup d'État

An information event will take place on 8 June 2026, 18:00 s.t. in room E23, incl. Q&A and a movie screening.

Requirements:

  • Interest in public speaking and international law (no prior knowledge required)
  • Strong English skills
  • Motivation and willingness to work in a team

Applications are open from 1 June 2026 to 21 June 2026.

Applications and further information: https://www.rewi.hu-berlin.de/de/lf/ls/mrx/jessup-moot-court

 

 

 

As part of a workshop entitled 'Fairness and International Law: Across Space and Time', organized by the Walther-Schücking-Institute in collaboration with the Max Planck Institute For Comparative Law and International Law and the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology, Aurelio Corneo and Judith Scherer presented their draft for a contribution entitled 'Existential Fairness: Towards a Right to Statehood for the Peoples of Low-Lying Island States'. In the text, they examine the implications for international law and legal practice of the International Court of Justice’s climate advisory opinion issued last year, as well as of the possibility articulated therein that states may continue to exist even without territory.

A report on the workshop, which took place from 10–12 May 2026, can be found here.

Image rights and source: Walther-Schücking-Institute

 

 

New publication: Christian Marxsen & Florian Kriener, 'The Prohibition of the Use of Force in Practice (1945–2020): Justifications, Contestations, and International Relations' in The British Yearbook of International Law (2026) (DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/bybil/brag001).

 

 

13 March 2026 – Panel Discussion: Does might make right?

 

 

 

12 March 2026 – Panel Discussion on Multiperspectivism in International Legal Scholarship

 

 

 

Interview on rbbKultur (7 March 2026 broadcast) with Prof. Marxsen on the legal classification under international law of the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran (6:27–10:54)

 

 

Interview with Prof. Marxsen on the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (rnd) (Daniela Vates) on 3 March 2026, regarding the legal classification under international law of the attacks by the U.S. and Israel on Iran

 

 

Christian Marxsen's postdoctoral thesis has been published in English (“Shades of Illegality in the Law Against War”) as part of the Oxford Monographs of International Law series (available here).

 

 

HU Jessup Team at the German National Rounds 2025/26 in Trier 

 
back row, from left to right: Bjørn Haubold (Coach), Jeanette Wald (Coach), Alexander Kozin (Mootie)
front row, from legt to right: Ksieniia Kiselova (Mootie), Carlotta Koch (Mootie), Ruby Brady (Mootie)
 
From February 18–21, 2026, the Humboldt University team—comprising of Ksieniia Kiselova, Carlotta Koch, Ruby Brady, and Alexander Kozin, accompanied by their coaches Jeanette Wald and Bjørn Haubold—competed in the German National Rounds in Trier. The team finished in 11th place. Humboldt University competed against teams from Heidelberg University, the University of Bonn, the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder), and the University of Augsburg.
 
The team and the Chair would like to extend their heartfelt thanks to all of the team's sponsors, without whom our participation would not have been possible:
 
  • ⁠Noerr
  • WilmerHale
  • ⁠Dombert Rechtsanwälte
  • Dentons
  • ⁠Posser Spieth Wolfers & Partners
  • GleissLutz
  • White & Case LLP
  • Redeker Sellner Dahs 
  • Jones Day 
  • ⁠John Faulk

 

 

24 November 2025 – Opening of the exhibition 'Women in International Law' in the lobby of the Law Department

 

 

 

2 July 2025 – Panel Discussion on The Politics of International Law: How do States Aim to Change the International Legal Order?

 

 

 

Christian Marxsen's article "Braucht die Bundeswehr wirklich Drohnen?" has been published in Frankfurter Rundschau (12 June 2025).

 

 

Christian Marxsen's Max Planck Encyclopedia Entry on "Armed Attack" by was published in May 2025.

 

 

Christian Marxsen in conversation with Tagesspiegel (Charlotte Greipl) regarding Donald Trump's remarks on Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal (14 January 2025)