Georges Abi-Saab
Georges Michel Abi-Saab | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 9, 1933 Heliopolis, Egypt |
| Occupation(s) | Jurist, professor of international law, judge |
| Known for | Representing Third World legal perspectives in international law; judge at International Court of Justice, International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda; Chairman of WTO Appellate Body |
Georges Michel Abi-Saab (born June 9, 1933) is an Egyptian jurist, professor specializing in international law, and judge, recognized for his commitment to representing the legal perspectives of Third World nations within the international legal framework.
Early life and education
Abi-Saab was born in Heliopolis and earned his law degree from Cairo University in 1954. He expanded his academic background by studying law, economics, and political science at several prestigious institutions: the Sorbonne, Harvard University (where he obtained an LL.M and L.D), University of Cambridge, University of Michigan (holding an MA in economics), and the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva, where he completed a PhD in political science. Additionally, he acquired a diploma from the Hague Academy of International Law.
Throughout his career, Abi-Saab served as a visiting professor at various universities, including Harvard Law School, Tunis University, University of Jordan, and the University of the West Indies at St. Augustine. He also held prominent academic appointments at New York University School of Law and several Belgian universities.
Career
Abi-Saab currently holds the title of Honorary Professor of International Law at both the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva and the Faculty of Law at Cairo University. He is also a member of the prestigious Institute of International Law.
He was instrumental in formulating Additional Protocol I, which enhanced legal safeguards under international humanitarian law for conflicts involving national liberation movements—an initiative strongly supported by Third World states but opposed by many Western countries. Furthermore, Abi-Saab provided counsel to the Secretary-General of the United Nations on matters such as the New International Economic Order.
His judicial appointments encompass two terms as an ad hoc Judge at the International Court of Justice, membership on the Appeals Chambers of both the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, service as Commissioner on the United Nations Compensation Commission, and leadership as Chairman of the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization until 2008.
In honor of his contributions, Abi-Saab was awarded the Manley O. Hudson Medal by the American Society of International Law in 2017.
Lectures
The International Judicial Function, presented within the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law Lecture Series
References
- Biography of Georges Michel Abi-Saab (WTO, Appellate Body Members)
- 1933 births
- Living people
- Cairo University alumni
- Members of the Institut de Droit International
- University of Paris alumni
- University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts alumni
- Harvard Law School alumni
- Alumni of the University of Cambridge
- University of Geneva alumni
- Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies alumni
- Academic staff of the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies
- New York University School of Law faculty
- Members of the Appellate Body
- International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia judges
- International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda judges
- 20th-century Egyptian judges
- Egyptian expatriates in the United States
- Egyptian expatriates in France
- Egyptian expatriates in Switzerland
- International law scholars
- Egyptian judges of United Nations courts and tribunals
- Egyptian expatriates in the United Kingdom
- 21st-century Egyptian judges