Housekeeping Annoucements

1
Housekeeping Annoucements

• Office Hours next week are changed to Wednesday
  2-330 (drop in)
• Assignment reminders
• Week of October 16th and Nov 2nd scheduling
  changes

2
Sources of International Law

• the concept of sources, what gives law authority
  or legitimacy
• general consent of states ways of expressing
  this
• treaties and customary international law

3
Article 38(1) ICJ Statute

• international conventions, whether general or
  particular, establishing the rules expressly
  recognized by the contesting States
• international custom, as evidence of a general
  practice accepted as law
• the general principles of law recognized by
  civilized nations
• judicial decisions and teachings of the most
  highly qualified publicistssubsidiary means
  (Art. 59)
• 2. power to decide a case ex aequo et bono

4
Treaties

• an international agreement concluded between
  States in written form and governed by
  international law, whether embodied in a single
  instrument or in two or more related instruments
  and whatever its particular designation.
• treaty, convention, protocol, covenant, charter,
  statute, act, declaration, concordat, exchange of
  notes, agreed minute, memorandum of agreement,
  modus vivendi, or any other appellation
• central principle consent to be bound

5
Treaties Essential Vocabulary

• full powers
• signature (authentication, good faith)
• ratification (domestic and international, Article
  14 of VCLT)
• acceptance, approval, accession
• reservations, declarations
• contracting state
• state party
• entry into force
• deposit
• multilateral, bilateral, law-making

6
Treaties Interpretation

• Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties,
  articles 31 and 32
• Art 31 general rules of interpretation
• in good faith and with ordinary meaning, in
  context and in light of its object and purpose
• in addition to the (full) text, the context shall
  comprise
• agreements relating to the treaty
• instruments made in connection with the treaty
• also subsequent agreements, subsequent practice,
  any relevant rules of international law
• special meanings if established

7
Article 32

• Recourse may be had to supplementary means of
  interpretation, including the preparatory work of
  the treaty () and the circumstances of its
  conclusion, in order to confirm the meaning
  resulting from the application of Art 31, or to
  determine the meaning when the interpretation
  according to Art 31
• leaves the meaning ambiguous or obscure or
• leads to a result which is manifestly absurd or
  unreasonable.