During his extraordinary career, Georges Abi-Saab served on the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, as a member of the WTO’s Appellate Body, as a judge ad hoc at the International Court of Justice, as an arbitrator, and as an advocate. Remarkably, he has been equally influential as a scholar and as a teacher, publishing numerous eloquent and significant books and articles, and teaching at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva and at other leading universities around the globe. In this interview with Jeffrey Dunoff, Professor Abi-Saab reflected on his career, and on the complex relations between international legal theory and practice.

Jeffrey Dunoff: Perhaps we can start our discussion of the relationships between theory and practice by inviting you to reflect on the term “theory.” The volume has chapters organized by schools of thought, but this is not the only way to understand “theory.”