Sean D. Murphy serves as the Manatt/Ahn Professor of International Law at the George Washington University Law School, where he has been a faculty member since 1998. His distinguished career spans both academic scholarship and practical application of international law principles across numerous international forums. Professor Murphy's educational background includes a BA from Catholic University, JD from Columbia University, LLM from Cambridge University, and SJD from the University of Virginia. His professional experience includes significant government service as legal counselor at the U.S. Embassy in The Hague, where he argued cases before the International Court of Justice and represented the U.S. before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. He also served as U.S. Agent to the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal and worked in the U.S. Department of State's Office of the Legal Adviser from 1987 to 1995. Professor Murphy's research focuses on public international law, U.S. foreign relations law, and crimes against humanity, with substantial contributions to the International Law Commission where he served as special rapporteur (2012-2022). His scholarly work bridges theoretical frameworks with practical applications, particularly in state responsibility, treaty law, and law of the sea. His publications demonstrate consistent engagement with evolving international legal norms and their implementation in domestic and international contexts. Professor Murphy's major scholarly contributions include his award-winning treatise The Law of U.S. Foreign Relations (2023) and his influential work Humanitarian Intervention: The United Nations in an Evolving World Order . His research trajectory shows increasing focus on codification efforts, particularly regarding crimes against humanity, reflecting his practical involvement in international legal development processes. 2024 American Branch of the International Law Association's Practitioners Book Award 2025 American Society of International Law (ASIL)'s Robert E. Dalton Book Prize 1997 ASIL Certificate for Preeminent Contribution to Creative Scholarship 1994 American Journal of International Law (AJIL)'s Deák Prize for Best Scholarship by a Younger Author Professor Murphy maintains an active international legal practice alongside his academic work, representing countries including Armenia, Ethiopia, Jordan, Kosovo, and the United States in international courts and tribunals. He has served as an arbitrator in inter-State and investor-State arbitrations and sat as an ad hoc judge on the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. In 2024, he was appointed to the World Bank's ICSID List of Arbitrators. He currently serves as a U.N. expert for the negotiation of a Convention on Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Humanity and is an Adviser for the Restatement (Fourth) on the Foreign Relations Law of the United States. Professor Murphy has held leadership positions in major international law organizations, including serving as President of the American Society of International Law (2018-2020) and as a Membre Associé of L'Institut de Droit International. He serves on the American Journal of International Law Board of Editors and continues to teach courses on International Law, U.S. Foreign Relations Law, and Public International Law Seminar at GW Law.
