t
he Hauser Global Law School Program celebrated in grand style during its three-day 10th anniversary celebration and reunion last March. U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Dominican Republic President Leonel Fernández, European Convention President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, President of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia Theodor Meron, member of the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization Georges Abi-Saab and two judges of the International Court of Justice, Thomas Buergenthal ’60 and Nabil El-Arabi (LL.M. ’69, J.S.D. ’71) were among the boldface names joining 79 far-flung alumni, plus family and friends, for a long weekend in New York City.
A Little Golf, a Little Sunshine and a Little Music Guests hailing from at least 33 countries on five continents were encouraged to arrive on Friday night or early Saturday so that they’d be able to enjoy a traditional American clam bake on the Sunset Terrace of Chelsea Piers, overlooking the Hudson River. Celebrants were invited to stay afterward to use the recreational facilities of the Chelsea Piers sports complex, including basketball, bowling and an unusual golf driving range on a pier that juts out over the Hudson River. The reunion officially began with a gala dinner on Saturday night in the chandeliered dining room of the Metropolitan Club. Kofi Annan, the guest speaker, delivered remarks concerning the importance of legal structure to the international world. “The rule of law permeates our lives. It provides the basic platform for peace,” he told 200 black-tie clad Hauser students, alumni and faculty. Annan vowed to the audience that the U.N. itself will “practice what it preaches” by investigating allegations of abuse carried out by its personnel, referring to the highly-publicized allegations of sexual abuse by U.N. employees in the Congo. “We will uphold the law and will hold wrongdoers accountable,” he said. After dinner, as the waiters cleared away what was left of the chocolate mousse and cake, New York University President and former Law School Dean John Sexton reminisced about how the Hauser program grew out of a 1993 breakfast meeting with Rita Hauser ’59. “That morning we came up with the acorn, which was a simple idea based on a simple observation,” Sexton said. The observation— that legal education was U.S.-centric— spurred Rita and husband Gustave Hauser (LL.M. ’57) to fund the program with an initial $5 million donation that has broadened the legal education of U.S. students while giving students and scholars from other countries the chance to study in New York City. Rita Hauser also addressed the crowd, telling the audience of her conviction that no country has a monop44
THE LAW SCHOOL
The world descended upon Manhattan to toast a decade of scholarship. Clockwise from top left: Dr. Leonel Fernández; Rita Hauser ‘59 in conversation with Kofi Annan; Alexander Fellow Youngjae Lee, right, with wife Julie Suk; Professor Theodor Meron; Dean Richard Revesz, right, shares a joke with Professor Norman Dorsen, center, and President John Sexton; from left: Puja Sondhi (LL.M. ’03, India), Roy Schöndorf (J.S.D. ’05, Israel) and Silvia Ostrower (LL.M. ’03, Argentina); guest Humphrey Kiara; Vanessa Lesnie (LL.M. ’98, Australia), left, with Chaman Sidhu (LL.M. ’97, Australia).
AUTUMN 2005