The Research Handbook on the Law of Treaties provides an authoritative treatment of fundamental issues in international treaty law. Identifying key challenges facing the modern law of treaties, the Handbook addresses the current regime and comments on potential directions of the law. Rather than an article-by-article commentary on provisions applicable to treaties, the Handbook offers an innovative study of their spatial, personal and temporal dimensions and of the tensions that arise due to the need for both flexibility and certainty in treaty relations. It analyses the interaction between treaty regimes and potential ruptures, as well as the expansion of treaty law to international organisations, corporations and individuals. Each chapter includes an 'agenda for research', highlighting areas where future work could yield significant results. This pioneering Handbook will prove an invaluable resource for researchers and advanced students, as well as providing unique insights for practitioners of international law.

The Research Handbook on the Law of Treaties provides an authoritative treatment of fundamental issues in international treaty law. Identifying key challenges facing the modern law of treaties, the Handbook addresses the current regime and comments on potential directions of the law. Rather than an article-by-article commentary on provisions applicable to treaties, the Handbook offers an innovative study of their spatial, personal and temporal dimensions and of the tensions that arise due to the need for both flexibility and certainty in treaty relations. It analyses the interaction between treaty regimes and potential ruptures, as well as the expansion of treaty law to international organisations, corporations and individuals. Each chapter includes an 'agenda for research', highlighting areas where future work could yield significant results. This pioneering Handbook will prove an invaluable resource for researchers and advanced students, as well as providing unique insights for practitioners of international law.

This book examines how the United Nations Security Council, in exercising its power to impose binding non-forcible measures ('sanctions') under Article 41 of the UN Charter, may violate international law. The Council may overstep limits on its power imposed by the UN Charter itself and by general international law, including human rights guarentees. Such acts may engage the international responsibility of the United Nations, the organization of which the Security Council is an organ. Disobeying the Security Council discusses how and by whom the responsibility of the UN for unlawful Security Council sanctions can be determined; in other words, how the UN can be held to account for Security Council excesses. The central thesis of this work is that states can respond to unlawful sanctions imposed by the Security Council, in a decentralized manner, by disobeying the Security Council's command. In international law, this disobedience can be justified as constituting a countermeasure to the Security Council's unlawful act. Recent practice of states, both in the form of executive acts and court decisions, demonstrates an increasing tendency to disobey sanctions that are perceived as unlawful. After discussing other possible qualifications of disobedience under international law, the book concludes that this practice can (and should) be qualified as a countermeasure.

State immunity, the idea that a state, including its individual organs, officials and other emanations, may not be proceeded against in the courts of another state in certain instances, has long been and remains a source of international controversy. Although customary international law no longer recognizes the absolute immunity of states from foreign judicial process, the evolution of the contemporary notion of restrictive state immunity over the past fifty years has been an uncoordinated and contested process, leading to disputes between states. The adoption, in 2004, of the United Nations Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Property has significantly contributed to reaching consensus among states on this fundamental question of international law. This book provides article-by-article commentary on the text of the Convention, complemented by a small number of cross-cutting chapters highlighting general issues beyond the scope of any single provision, such as the theoretical underpinnings of state immunity, the distinction between immunity from suit and immunity from execution, the process leading to the adoption of the Convention, and the general understanding that the Convention does not extend to criminal matters. It presents a systematic analysis of the Convention, taking into account its drafting history, relevant state practice (including the considerable number of national statutes and judicial decisions on state immunity), and any international judicial or arbitral decisions on point.

The fully revised and updated new edition of this authoritative work provides a clear and detailed analysis of the institutions and procedures for the settlement of international disputes. There has been a continued expansion of the number of international tribunals and the number of cases before international courts in recent years. The proliferation of such fora and of the jurisprudence they generate has made it essential to understand and regulate evolving and competing jurisdictions. This new edition authoritatively sets out the substance and procedure of the law of international dispute settlement in the context of these new developments. The first part of the book examines the different methods and institutions of dispute settlement. It introduces the most important dispute settlement methods and discusses the role of domestic courts in settling international disputes. It assesses the institutions of general jurisdiction, notably the International Court of Justice, and the various sectoral regimes of dispute settlement. Part two provides a comprehensive examination of procedure before an international court or tribunal. It sets out the shared elements of procedure, while also highlighting the important procedural differences between the various international courts and arbitral bodies. This section includes an discussion of the law of evidence and the conduct of counsel in international adjudication. The third part focuses on the problems facing the system of international dispute settlement as a result of the proliferation of dispute resolution mechanisms, and the augmenting specialization and fragmentation of international law. It analyses the various ways competing jurisdictions can be regulated to avoid creating conflicting decisions, and the resultant systemic incoherence. The book remains essential reading for both students of international law and international legal practitioners.

The fully revised and updated new edition of this authoritative work provides a clear and detailed analysis of the institutions and procedures for the settlement of international disputes. There has been a continued expansion of the number of international tribunals and the number of cases before international courts in recent years. The proliferation of such fora and of the jurisprudence they generate has made it essential to understand and regulate evolving and competing jurisdictions. This new edition authoritatively sets out the substance and procedure of the law of international dispute settlement in the context of these new developments. The first part of the book examines the different methods and institutions of dispute settlement. It introduces the most important dispute settlement methods and discusses the role of domestic courts in settling international disputes. It assesses the institutions of general jurisdiction, notably the International Court of Justice, and the various sectoral regimes of dispute settlement. Part two provides a comprehensive examination of procedure before an international court or tribunal. It sets out the shared elements of procedure, while also highlighting the important procedural differences between the various international courts and arbitral bodies. This section includes an discussion of the law of evidence and the conduct of counsel in international adjudication. The third part focuses on the problems facing the system of international dispute settlement as a result of the proliferation of dispute resolution mechanisms, and the augmenting specialization and fragmentation of international law. It analyses the various ways competing jurisdictions can be regulated to avoid creating conflicting decisions, and the resultant systemic incoherence. The book remains essential reading for both students of international law and international legal practitioners.

This collection of documents brings together a large number of primary sources on the peaceful settlement of disputes in a usable and affordable format. The documents included reflect the diverse techniques of international dispute settlement, as recognised in Articles 2(3) and 33 of the UN Charter, such as negotiation, mediation, arbitration and adjudication. The book comprises the most relevant multilateral treaties establishing dispute settlement regimes, as well as examples of special agreements, compromissory clauses, optional clause declarations and relevant resolutions of international organisations. It covers both diplomatic and adjudicative methods of dispute settlement and follows a basic division between general dispute settlement mechanisms, and sectoral regimes in fields such as human rights, WTO law, investment, law of the sea, environmental law and arms control. The book is the first widely-available collection of key documents on dispute settlement. It is aimed at teachers, students and practitioners of international law and related disciplines.

This book examines how the United Nations Security Council, in exercising its power to impose binding non-forcible measures ('sanctions') under Article 41 of the UN Charter, may violate international law, in the sense of limits on its power imposed by the UN Charter itself and by general international law, including human rights guarantees. Such acts may engage the international responsibility of the United Nations, the organization of which the Security Council is an organ. It then proceeds to assess how and by whom the engagement of this responsibility can be determined. Most importantly, the book discusses how and by whom the responsibility of the UN for unlawful Security Council sanctions can be implemented. In other words, how the UN can be held to account for Security Council excesses. The central thesis of this work is that States can respond to unlawful sanctions imposed by the Security Council, in a decentralized manner, by disobeying the Security Council's command. In international law, this disobedience can be justified as constituting a countermeasure to the Security Council's unlawful act. Recent practice of States, both in the form of executive acts and court decisions, demonstrates an increasing tendency to disobey sanctions that are perceived as unlawful. After discussing other possible qualifications of disobedience under international law, the book concludes that this practice can (and should) be qualified as a countermeasure.