ICLQ Annual Lecture: 'Human Rights Obligations in Maritime Search and Rescue'

The International and Comparative Law Quarterly (ICLQ) Annual Lecture showcases an outstanding article published in the Journal during the preceding year, chosen by the Editorial Board. The 2026 ICLQ Annual Lecture will be given by Dr Sofia Galani of the Panteio University of Athens, based on her article 'Human Rights Obligations in Maritime Search and Rescue' published in Vol 74(1) ICLQ The duty to render assistance to persons in distress is well established in the international law of the sea, but none of the instruments which codify the duty contains human rights obligations. However, serious human rights violations may occur during search and rescue (SAR) operations or because of the lack thereof. This article examines the duty of States to render assistance to persons in distress through the lens of international human rights law and advocates for a human rights-oriented approach to SAR. It discusses the due diligence nature of the duty, the scope of jurisdiction in maritime SAR and how States should act to adhere to their human rights obligations from the moment they receive a distress call through to the moment they disembark rescued persons on land. The event, chaired by the ICLQ General Editor Professor Alex Mills, will also provide the opportunity to present this year's Hazel Fox Early Career Prize to Dr Priya Urs, for her article 'The Articulation of Obligations Erga Omnes and Erga Omnes Partes by the International Court of Justice: Coherence or Confusion?' published in Vol 74(2) ICLQ. Dr Urs is Junior Research Fellow in Law at St John's College, University of Oxford, where she is nearing the end of a four-year research project on the articulation and enforcement of obligations erga omnes (partes) in international law. She is the author of the monograph 'Gravity at the International Criminal Court: Admissibility and Prosecutorial Discretion' (OUP 2024). She will present her article and her wider research in conversation with Professor Mills and will be presented with a certificate along with £250 worth of Cambridge University Press books of her choice. Find out more: https://www.biicl.org/events/12088/ic...