UKSC hosts international law event with Professor Dapo Akande
The United Kingdom Supreme Court (UKSC) has hosted an event entitled ‘The Future of International Law’ on 4 June 2025, during which UKSC President Lord Reed, Lord Lloyd-Jones, and Professor Dapo Akande discussed the evolving relationship between international and domestic law. Professor Akande is the UK’s candidate for election as a judge to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for the term 2027–2036. The event was attended by senior legal representatives, officials from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and several representatives from London-based diplomatic missions. The discussion explored the increasing role of international law within domestic courts, noting that international legal principles have become central to contemporary litigation practices. The speakers examined how human rights instruments, such as the European Convention on Human Rights and the Human Rights Act, are being incorporated into domestic decision-making, and they emphasised the expanded regulatory function of international law, which now governs not only inter-state relations but also interactions involving individuals and private entities. They also highlighted the significance of domestic court decisions in contributing to the development of customary international law while stressing that any new legal norms should be established with broad international consensus.