On June 24, 2025, the Faculty of Law at the University of Vienna awarded two honorary doctorates to Professor Andrea K. Bjorklund and Professor Anne Peters, two leading international law scholars.
Andrea K. Bjorklund is the L. Yves Fortier Chair of International Arbitration and International Commercial Law at McGill University in Montréal, Canada. Her impressive career led her from Yale Law School to service in the U.S. government, first at the International Trade Commission and later at the U.S. Department of State. Through her outstanding academic work, which covers a wide range of topics including denial of justice, counterclaims, the competition between international courts, the enforcement of international arbitral awards, sovereign immunity, soft law, the diversity deficit and the investment arbitration reform, she has made a significant contribution to strengthening the international rule of law. She has also made major contributions to collective works, including serving as editor-in-chief of the influential journal Arbitration International, co-editor of the recent three-volume Cambridge Compendium of International Commercial and Investment Arbitration, and having served as Vice President of the American Society of International Law. She has been instrumental in shaping modern investment law. Her long-standing connection with the University of Vienna includes a visiting professorship, organizing and participating in conferences, and close academic collaboration with members of the Department of International Law.
Anne Peters is the co-director of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law in Heidelberg, one of the world’s leading research institutions in the field. Following her studies in Würzburg, Lausanne, Freiburg, and Harvard, as well as her habilitation at the University of Kiel, she held a professorship in international and constitutional law at the University of Basel. Her extensive and influential academic work is marked by the combination of fundamental research with the exploration of previously underexamined areas of international law. Notably, her pioneering research focuses on the constitutionalization of international law, transparency in international law, the legal status of individuals, and the history of international law. Another major area of focus of her research is global animal law. Her work on commissions and as an expert reviewer, as well as her participation in conferences, connects her closely to the Faculty of Law at the University of Vienna. She is also a corresponding member of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, further highlighting her strong connection to Vienna.
In the morning, Professors Bjorklund and Peters delivered their faculty lectures at the Juridicum to an audience of over one hundred people. Professor Bjorklund spoke on the resilience of international law—an especially relevant topic in light of rising geopolitical tensions—and offered an optimistic outlook: it is precisely under pressure that international law demonstrates its resilience. Professor Peters addressed the issue of double standards in international law, arguing in favour of a constitutionalized approach to international law and emphasizing the necessity of consistent and non-arbitrary application of the law.
The award ceremony took place in the afternoon in the Grand Ceremony Hall of the University of Vienna. Professor Michael Waibel delivered the laudation for Andrea K. Bjorklund and Professor August Reinisch, on behalf of Anne Peters. Rector Sebastian Schütze and Dean Brigitta Zöchling-Jud read out the honorary diplomas and ceremoniously presented them to the honorary doctors along with the honorary pins. A reception in honor of the recipients followed in the Small Ceremony Hall, where this special occasion was celebrated in a festive atmosphere.
