In two major treaty rulings, the Roberts court has drawn the line at the border
In just his third term heading the U.S. Supreme Court, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. has already put his stamp on international law and the interpretation of treaties . . .
This term, in a far-reaching opinion handed down March 25, the chief justice said the Supreme Court retains the final power to interpret treaties and to decide how they will be enforced within this country. An international court cannot make binding “domestic law” within the United States, he said. Medellin v. Texas, 128 S. Ct. 1346.
Experts in international law have called Medellin a setback for America’s reputation abroad. “The U.S. has been an active user of the international court, and we usually win. This is a blow to our image for upholding the rule of law,” says Lori Fisler Damrosch, a professor of international law at Columbia University . . .