Session 1
International Humanitarian Law
Prof. Ray Murphy/Prof. Shane Darcy
The aim of the course is to familiarize students with the general principles and laws comprising international humanitarian law (‘IHL’) and related issues. The course examines the role of IHL in situations of armed conflict and what constitutes a war crime. It critically examines the provisions of the 1949 Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocols. It pays particular attention to the criteria for determining if a situation of armed conflict exists and the nature of the conflict. It examines the conduct of hostilities, and the rules governing the treatment of combatants and prisoners of war. It looks at current situations of armed conflict, especially Ukraine. It explains and evaluates the protection of civilians under IHL and the concept of ‘protected persons’. The course evaluates the implementation of IHL and how individuals are held accountable for war crimes. Finally, the course explains the nature of UN peacekeeping operations in post conflict situations.
Artificial Intelligence and the Law: A Comparative Approach
Prof. Bhamati Viswanathan
Artificial intelligence (AI) is proliferating at lightning speed and on many fronts. Although AI's facets are vast, this course will focus on a relatively narrow sector, Large Language Models (LLMs) and Generative AI. We will start by delving into how LLMs actually work, including their capacities, limitations, and promise(s). We will consider the various fronts on which they present challenges to legal regimes, and how those challenges are currently being addressed. We will take a close look through the lens of intellectual property law (IP), and ask whether IP is appropriate, adequate, and/or helpful in regulating LLMs and other kinds of AI. We will examine the differing approaches, perspectives, and proposals for regulatory mechanisms (particularized or systemic) arising among the UK, US, EU, and other global stakeholders. We will also read the works of leading academics whose work may help illuminate some of these thorny debates. No technical or legal knowledge is required for this course, but some familiarity with IP basics may be helpful—and curiosity and openness will definitely be helpful.
Session 2
International Human Rights Law
Dr. Edel Hughes
The course aims to provide students with a general introduction to the sources, systems, and foundations of international human rights law. It also aims to include a critical lens that will give students the skills to apply the law utilizing a robust understanding of the origins, impacts, and power of international human rights law.
Additional Session 2 courses TBD.
Click here to view the courses that were offered in Summer 2024.
2025 Galway Program Faculty
Professor Shane Darcy
Professor Shane Darcy is the Deputy Director of the Irish Centre for Human Rights in the School of Law at the National University of Ireland Galway, where he teaches business and human rights, international humanitarian law and international criminal law. He is the author of Judges, Law and War; The Judicial Development of International Humanitarian Law (Cambridge University Press, 2014) and To Serve the Enemy: Informers, Collaborators and the Laws of Armed Conflict (Oxford University Press, 2019). He is a member of the Editorial Boards of the Business and Human Rights Journal, the Irish Yearbook of International Law and Criminal Law Forum. [Source: University of Galway]
Professor Ray Murphy
Professor Ray Murphy is a professor at the Irish Centre for Human Rights, School of Law University of Galway. He is also on the faculty of the International Institute for Criminal Investigations (The Hague). Prof. Murphy was a Visiting Scholar at the Centre for International Law, Al-Haq, Palestine in 2014. He was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship in 2006 and worked with Human Rights Watch in New York as a resident scholar. He has conducted international training on behalf of the ICRC, No Peace Without Justice, Amnesty International, the UN, the International Institute for Humanitarian Law and the Pearson Peacekeeping Center, Canada. He is also a Commissioner with the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. Prof. Murphy is a former Captain in the Irish Defense Forces and he served as an infantry officer with the Irish contingent of UNIFIL in Lebanon in 1981/82 and again in 1989. He was Chairperson of the Broadcasting Complaints Commission from 1997 to 2000. He has field experience with the OSCE in Bosnia in 1996 and 1997. He has also worked on short assignments in west and southern Africa and the Middle East for Amnesty International, the European Union and the Irish Government. [Source: University of Galway]
Professor Bhamati Viswanathan
Professor Bhamati Viswanathan has several years of teaching experience at diverse schools, including Williams College, University of Pennsylvania Law School, and most recently, Emerson College and Roger Williams University Law School.
Prior to teaching, Professor Viswanathan practiced corporate and securities law in New York and Massachusetts. She then worked at a technology startup, where she served as counsel on corporate and intellectual property matters. Professor Viswanathan is trustee and chair of the New England Section of the Copyright Society of the U.S. She is co-chair of the Emerging Technologies Committee of the American Bar Association IP Law Section. She is also a faculty advisor on the Academic Board of the Copyright Alliance.
Professor Viswanathan continues to speak, write, and advise actively on IP issues, particularly with respect to creative industries and entrepreneurship. [Source: New England Law | Boston]
Dr. Edel Hughes
Dr. Edel Hughes is a Lecturer in Law at the University of Galway. Dr. Edel Hughes joined the School of Law in January 2020. She holds a BCL (Law and French) from University College Cork and LLM and PhD degrees from the University of Galway. Prior to joining the University of Galway, Edel held lectureships at the University of Limerick, the University of East London, and Middlesex University London. Edel's research interests are in the law and politics of human rights, human rights and conflict-affected settings, and EU external relations and human rights. She is currently principal investigator on an Arts and Humanities/Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office funded project examining the impact of invisibility on conflict-related sexual violence against men in the context of the war in Syria. [Source: University of Galway]
Click here to view the faculty members who taught in Summer 2024.
An Unbeatable Study Abroad Experience for Law Students
New England Law | Boston offers an exciting and unique summer study abroad opportunity for law students at the Irish Centre for Human Rights, University of Galway. Taught by experts from Ireland and the United States, the program focuses on international and comparative human rights law and accountability for human rights violations.
Featuring thought-provoking and rigorous courses, the Galway Program has attracted many distinguished visiting faculty members over the years, including U.S. Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Anthony M. Kennedy, and Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr.
Outside of class, law students explore the beautiful city of Galway, go to Irish courts, attend social events, and visit breathtaking sites in the West of Ireland, including the Cliffs of Moher, Kylemore Abbey, and the Aran Islands. Students often choose to travel more extensively on the weekends as well.
I would recommend students participate in the Galway Program because the classes offered are interesting, the group trips are incredible, and the opportunity to go to another country to learn was amazing!”
—Mary Byrne ’24