Rosalyn Cohen Higgins, Baroness Higgins, (born 2 June 1937) is a British former president of the

International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; , CIJ), or colloquially the World Court, is the only international court that Adjudication, adjudicates general disputes between nations, and gives advisory opinions on International law, internation ...

(ICJ). She was the first female judge elected to the ICJ, and was elected to a three-year term as its president in 2006.

Life

Born to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family in 1937 as Rosalyn Cohen, she married the politician Terence Higgins in 1961. Her husband was created a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

in 1997; consequently, she became Baroness Higgins by use of being married with him.

Education and career

Higgins studied at

Girton College, Cambridge Girton College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college at Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college status by the un ...

, receiving her

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

degree in 1959 and an

LL.B. A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

degree in 1962. She was a

Harkness Fellow The Harkness Fellowship (previously known as the Commonwealth Fund Fellowship) is a program run by the Commonwealth Fund of New York City. This fellowship was established to reciprocate the Rhodes Scholarships and enable Fellows from several cou ...

between 1959 and 1961. Besides her undergraduate degrees, she also qualified with a

M.A. A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree. She continued her studies at

Yale Law School Yale Law School (YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824. The 2020–21 acceptance rate was 4%, the lowest of any law school in the United ...

earning a

J.S.D. A Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD; ), or a Doctor of the Science of Law (JSD; ), is a research doctorate degree in law that is equivalent to a Ph.D. degree. In most countries, it is the most advanced law degree that can be earned. Australia ...

degree in 1962.Award of Merit
- Yale alumni website Following her education, Higgins was a practising

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

, and became a

Queen's Counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

(QC; since 2022, KC) in 1986, and is a bencher of the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

. She served on the UN Human Rights Committee for 14 years. Her role as member of the leading body for supervising implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights earned her respect for her diligence and competence. She resigned from the

Human Rights Committee The United Nations Human Rights Committee is a treaty body composed of 18 experts, established by a 1966 human rights treaty, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The Committee meets for three four-week sessions per ye ...

when she was elected to the

on 12 July 1995, re-elected on 6 February 2000, and ended her second term on 6 February 2009. Her professional appointments include: *Specialist in International Law,

Royal Institute of International Affairs Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Roya ...

, 1963–1974 *Visiting Fellow,

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

, 1974–1978 *Professor of International Law,

University of Kent at Canterbury A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

, 1978–1981 *Professor of International Law,

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

(

), 1981–1995 *Vice President,

British Institute of International and Comparative Law British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

*Member of the UN Human Rights Committee. Higgins is the author of several influential works on international law, including ''Problems and Process: International Law and How We Use It'' (1994). Despite delivering many balanced judgements in different cases, Higgins's dissenting opinion in the ICJ's advisory opinion on the Legality of the Threat or the Use of Nuclear Weapons has been widely criticised by some legal scholars, on the grounds that it provides sovereign states with an unjustifiable amount of latitude in resort to the use of

nuclear weapon A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear exp ...

s in times of armed conflict. In October 2009 she was appointed advisor on

International Law International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...

, to the British government's

inquiry An inquiry (also spelled as enquiry in British English) is any process that has the aim of augmenting knowledge, resolving doubt, or solving a problem. A theory of inquiry is an account of the various types of inquiry and a treatment of the ...

into the

Iraq war The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

(Headed by Sir

John Chilcot Sir John Anthony Chilcot (; 22 April 1939 – 3 October 2021) was a British civil servant. In 2009, Chilcot was appointed chairman of the Iraq Inquiry (also referred to as the "Chilcot Inquiry"), an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding ...

Honours and awards

Higgins is a member of the Institut de droit international. In 1995, she was appointed a

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(DBE) "for services to international law", and in the

2019 New Year Honours The 2019 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

promoted to Dame Grand Cross of the same Order (GBE) "for services to International Law and Justice". In 1988 she was appointed a Knight of the French Order of Academic Palms. Furthermore, in 2007 she was awarded the

Balzan Prize The International Balzan Prize Foundation awards four annual monetary prizes to people or organizations who have made outstanding achievements in the fields of humanities, natural sciences, culture, as well as for endeavours for peace and the b ...

for International Law since 1945. Her competence has been recognised by many academic institutions, having received at least thirteen

honorary doctorates An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

, as well as the

Award of Merit and also the Manley-O.-Hudson medal.

References

Footnotes

External links

ICJ Biography of H.E. President Rosalyn Higgins

Who's Who in Public International Law 2007
*

Shabtai Rosenne Shabtai Rosenne (; 24 November 1917 – 21 September 2010) was a Professor of International Law and an Israeli diplomat. Rosenne was awarded the 1960 Israel Prize for Jurisprudence, the 1999 Manley O. Hudson Medal for International Law and Jur ...

Memorial Lecture
"Shabtai Rosenne and the International Court of Justice"
by Dame Rosalyn Higgins DBE QC, London, 19 November 2012 (retrieved 2013-03-26)

a lecture by Dame Rosalyn Higgins in th

(retrieved 2013-03-26)
Belgium/Netherlands Iron Rhine Award
an
XXVII UNRIAA 35
an
Award Series

Professor Edith Brown Weiss and Charles Brower
and ICJ Presidents an
H.E. Stephen M. Schwebel
a
the 104th ASIL Annual Dinner of 26 March 2010
in

Ritz Carlton The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC is an American multinational corporation, multinational company that operates the Hotel#Luxury, luxury hotel chain known as The Ritz-Carlton. The company has 108 conference and resort hotels, luxury hotels an ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and in
ICJ Presidents H.E. Rosalyn Higgins
and H.E.

Stephen M. Schwebel Stephen Myron Schwebel (born March 10, 1929), is an American jurist and international judge, counsel and arbitrator. He previously served as judge of the World Bank Administrative Tribunal (2010–2017),

a
The Function of International Law Conference in Cambridge on 11-12 July 2008
an
25th Lauterpacht Centre's Anniversary

of the Institute of International Law an
IDI Members

Manley O. Hudson Awards
and
26 January 2009
* ICJ President

and H.E.

a
the ILSA-ASIL Gala Dinner Celebrating the 50th Anniversary
of the

Philip Jessup Philip Caryl Jessup (February 5, 1897 – January 31, 1986) was a 20th-century American diplomat, scholar, and jurist notable for his accomplishments in the field of international law. Early life and education Philip Caryl Jessup was born on ...

Moot Court Competition on 27 March 2009 an
Jessup's 50th Anniversary Honorary Committee
and an
50th Jessup Programme
an
Prize for "Best Jessup Oralist" Launched in Honour of Former ICJ President Stephen M. Schwebel
a
the 103rd ASIL Annual Meeting on International Law as Law, Fairmont Hotel
in

, 25–28 March 2009 * U.S. Legal Adviser

Harold Hongju Koh Harold Hongju Koh (born December 8, 1954) is an American diplomat, lawyer, legal scholar, politician, and writer. Except for his periods of government service, he has taught at Yale Law School from 1985 to the present, including as the law school ...

's Membership, along with i.a. H.E. Former ICJ President

, i
the U.S. National Group
o
the PCA
which on 18 June 2010 nominate

to be the second - after ICJ President Rosalyn Higgins
woman Judge in the International Court of Justice's history
and U.S. Foreign Secretary

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

's
Congratulations
{{DEFAULTSORT:Higgins, Rosalyn Presidents of the International Court of Justice United Nations Human Rights Committee members 1937 births Living people Academics of the London School of Economics Academics of the University of Kent Alumni of Girton College, Cambridge Chevaliers of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire British baronesses British legal scholars English King's Counsel English Jews 20th-century English judges Fellows of Girton College, Cambridge Harkness Fellows International law scholars Members of the Institut de Droit International Lawyers from London Spouses of life peers Yale Law School alumni 21st-century English judges Honorary Fellows of the London School of Economics British judges of United Nations courts and tribunals British women legal scholars Wives of knights 20th-century British women lawyers 21st-century British women lawyers International Court of Justice judges 20th-century British women judges Lawyers awarded damehoods