International Law

A Functional Approach to the Legal Review of Autonomous Weapon Systems

By Damian Copeland
Brill Nijhoff October 2024

Specifications

ISBN-13
9789004707030
Publisher
Brill Nijhoff
Publication
October 2024
Format
Hardback
Jurisdiction
Netherlands ? Countri(es) for reference only

Details

Autonomous Weapon Systems (AWS) are no longer limited to science fiction. Conflicts in the Ukraine and Gaza demonstrate an increased trend toward the use of autonomy in the use of force in armed conflict. This book analyses the art 36 legal review obligation and assesses how states can determine the legality of AWS. It proposes a new ‘functional’ approach to legal review that considers both weapons law and targeting rules engaged by the autonomous functionality.

Table of Contents

Foreword
Acknowledgements
List of Tables
Table of Abbreviations
Glossary

Part 1: Is the Traditional Approach to Legal Reviews Sufficient to Determine the Legality of Autonomous Weapon Systems?
Introduction to Part 1
1. Introduction
2. A Survey of Academic Discourse on Legal Reviews
3. How Does International Law Regulate AWS?
 1: The Objectives of Weapons Law
 2: Sources and Development of Weapons Law
 3: Specific and General Weapons Law
 4: Martens Clause
 5: Conclusions
4. Sources and Scope of the Legal Review Obligation and Application to AWS
 1: Origins of the Legal Review Obligation
 2: Analysing the Article 36 Operative Terms
 3: Conclusions Concerning the Art 36 Operative Terms
5. Identifying the Traditional Legal Review Process
 1: Limited State Practice
 2: Traditional Legal Review Process
 3: Common Steps of the Traditional Legal Review Methodology Applied to aws
 4: Outcomes of the Traditional Legal Review Process
 5: Traditional Legal Review Dichotomy between Weapons Law and Targeting Law
 6: Conclusions

Part 2: How Can a State Determine the Legality of an  AWS?
Introduction to Part 2
6. Interpretive and Methodological Questions in the Legal Review of AWS
 1: Article 36’s Interpretive Questions Arising from Autonomy in Weapons
 2: Methodological Questions
 3: Conclusions Arising from the Interpretive and Methodological Questions
7. An Additional ‘Functional’ Legal Review Step to Address Autonomy in Weapons
 1: Adding a Functional Review Step to the Traditional Legal Review Methodology
 2: Describing the Elements of the ‘Functional Review’ Step
 3: Conclusion
8. Proposal to Expand the Legal Review throughout the  aws ’ Lifecycle
 1: Stage 1 – Informative Stage
 2: Stage 2 – Determinative Stage
 3: Stage 3 – Governance Stage
 4: Conclusion
9. Conclusions and Findings

Bibliography
Index
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