Ying Sun

Institution: European University Institute

Period of stay: 22 April 2024 to 28 June 2024

Contact: ying.sun@eui.eu

https://www.eui.eu/people?id=ying-sun

Profile: 

Ying Sun is a PhD researcher in international law at the European University Institute. She obtained her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in law from Tsinghua University in China. She also holds a master’s degree from the MIDS Program at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. Ying was the assistant editor of the European Journal of International Law and a peer reviewer for the European Journal of Legal Studies. She also contributes to the Oxford Reports on International Law in Domestic Courts. Since February of 2024, Ying has been a visiting fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law.

Prior to embarking on her PhD journey, Ying is a qualified PRC lawyer. She gained various practical experiences, including working at a leading Chinese law firm specializing in international arbitration and domestic litigation, serving as a legal intern at the Hong Kong Department of Justice and Disney Company. She also worked as an external legal consultant for the OECD.

Research Area:

Public international law; International dispute settlement; Sources of international law; Social-legal studies

Research Title:

Who Cares about State Consent in International Lawmaking? Judicial Engagement with Instruments Issued by International Organizations.

Research Outline:

Non-state actors have increasingly influenced international lawmaking, leading to intensified debates over the role of state consent as the foundation of international law. My thesis examines how international lawyers and adjudicators view the role of state consent in international lawmaking by analyzing their engagement with instruments issued by international organizations ("IO-generated instruments"). The thesis begins by introducing theoretical debates surrounding the concept of state consent and its evolving role in international lawmaking, along with a taxonomy of state consent featuring different characteristics. It then focuses on how international lawyers and adjudicators engage with IO-generated instruments in the PCIJ and the ICJ cases, exploring questions such as: 1) which categories of IO-generated instruments have been referred to in judicial proceedings; 2) the way of judicial engagement with these instruments; 3) scenarios where state consent is referred to for justifying the normative effects of IO-generated instruments; 4) how the meaning and importance of state consent varied under different scenarios.

Drawing on a comprehensive case analysis and theoretical discussion, this thesis unpacks the concept of “state consent”. It argues that state consent is not always pivotal in identifying and interpreting international norms. However, the dominance of positivism and the corresponding emphasis on state consent place a significant mental burden on international lawyers and adjudicators as they strive to establish connections between state consent and the norms they rely upon. Consequently, state consent emerges as an important placeholder in international legal arguments, encompassing a wide spectrum of behaviors and potentially carrying very fluid meanings.

Publications:

1. Ying Sun, Why States Refuse to Participate in Judicial Proceedings: Uncovering Key Reasons and Historical Evolution, Journal of International Dispute Settlement, Journal of International Dispute Settlement, Volume 14, Issue 4, 451–468.
2. Ying Sun, Enforcement of Annulled Arbitral Awards – Theoretical Debates and the Path under Comparative Law, Commercial Arbitration & Mediation, No. 1, 2023 (Serial No. 17), 51-66. (published in Chinese)
3. Ying Sun (with Xianglin Chen, Yanyan Wang), Chapter of China, in Arbitration World: Jurisdictional and Institutional Comparisons (editor with Karyl Nairn, QC), Sweet & Maxwell, 6th edition, 2018.
 

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