Lemkin Rule of Law Guardian | Prof. Harold Hongju Koh
Professor Harold Hongju Koh of Yale Law School, the 2023 recipient of the Raphael Lemkin Rule of Law Guardian Medal from the Bolch Judicial Institute, was honored during a program (recorded here) at 12:30 p.m. EDT on Oct. 9, 2023 at Duke Law School. In addition to receiving the medal, Professor Koh spoke with Paul W. Grimm, director of the Bolch Judicial Institute and a retired federal judge, about his distinguished career defending human rights and promoting the rule of law.
ABOUT PROFESSOR KOH
Koh is internationally recognized as a leading expert in public and private international law, national security law, and human rights. He is a prolific writer and scholar whose career has spanned numerous positions in academia and public service, including service as Assistant Secretary for Human Rights in the Clinton administration, the 15th Dean of Yale Law School, legal adviser of the Department of State in the Obama administration, and the Sterling Professor of International Law at Yale Law, where he continues to teach and represent individuals who have suffered human rights abuses. He is currently among the lawyers representing Ukraine at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague asking the court to declare Russia in violation of three international treaties.
ABOUT THE LEMKIN MEDAL
The Lemkin Rule of Law Guardian Medal honors individuals who seek to advance and protect the rule of law in their everyday work. It is named for Raphael Lemkin, a one-time Duke Law faculty member and one of the leading 20th century scholars of human rights, and is awarded by the director of the Bolch Judicial Institute in consultation with the Institute’s leadership boards. Benjamin Ferencz, the last living Nuremberg Trial prosecutor, received the inaugural Lemkin Medal in 2020. Duke Law Professor Jim Coleman received the Lemkin Medal in 2022.
For more information, visit https://judicialstudies.duke.edu/.