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26 Gonz. J. Int'l L. 1 (2022)

handle is hein.journals/gjil26 and id is 1 raw text is: LAW ONLY FOR THE FUTURE: NONRETROACTIVITY AS A FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE OF INTERNATIONAL LAW Nathan Moelker* I. INTRODU CTION ................................................................................ 2 II. CRIMINAL LAW'S APPLICATION OF NONRETROACTIVITY................. 5 III. TREATY ANALYSIS OF NONRETROACTIVITY .................................... 11 IV. NATIONAL CONSTITUTIONS AND THEIR APPLICATION ....................... 14 V. THE UNIVERSAL APPLICATION OF THIS NORM................................. 16 V I. C O N C LU SIO N .......................................................................................2 2 ABSTRACT One of the most fundamental principles of international law is the principle of nonretroactivity, that is, the principle that an action should be adjudicated according to the law in place at the time of the alleged wrong. While this doctrine is consistently recognized throughout international law, in public discourse about international law it tends to be reduced solely to a criminal protection. This article argues that, while the protections the principle ofnonretroactivity offers in the realm of the criminal law are clearly of manifest and fundamental importance, the principle of nonretroactivity cannot be reduced merely to a criminal doctrine. It is robustly embraced in treaties and valued as a universal legal norm in most domestic constitutions. International legal organizations of great weight and authority treat this principle as a universally binding norm, as does the decisions of several *Regent University School of Law J.D. 2022. 2022-23 Law Clerk for Alabama Chief Justice Thomas Parker. Special thanks to Marshall Goldman, Senior Litigation Counsel, and Robert Ash, Senior Counsel, at the ACLJ, who permitted some initial research in this area, after it grew beyond the scope of a work assignment, to serve as the initial spark that ignited the idea for this note and provided thoughtful feedback. Thanks also to Professor Jeffrey Brauch, Regent University School of Law, who provides insightful feedback on an earlier draft of this piece. Thanks also to Kelsey McGee and Kalina Speaks for their editorial assistance.

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