Customary International Law

Provides an in-depth study of the theory, history, practice, and interpretation of customary international law.

Customary International Humanitarian Law, Volume I: Rules is a comprehensive analysis of the customary rules of international humanitarian law applicable in international and non-international armed conflicts. In the absence of ratifications of important treaties in this area, this is clearly a publication of major importance, carried out at the express request of the international community. In so doing, this study identifies the common core of international humanitarian law binding on all parties to all armed conflicts. Comment Don:RWI.

This book sets out to articulate a comprehensive theory of customary international law that can effectively resolve the conceptual and practical enigmas surrounding it. It takes a multidisciplinary approach and draws insights from international law, legal theory, political science, and game theory. It is anchored in a sophisticated ethical framework and explores the interrelationships between customary international law and ethics.

This book provides a comprehensive account of the emergence of the customary law of human rights. It examines a range of human rights norms, and provides a useful guide to identifying those which can be described as customary.

"The book guides the reader through an analysis of eight distinct performances at work in the discourse on customary international law. One of its key claims is that customary international law is not the surviving trace of an ancient law-making mechanism that used to be found in traditional societies. Indeed, as is shown throughout, customary international law is anything but ancient, and there is hardly any doctrine of international law that contains so many of the features of modern thinking. It is also argued that, contrary to mainstream opinion, customary international law is in fact shaped by texts, and originates from a textual environment"--Page 4 de la couverture.

Reexamining Customary International Law takes on the complex issues and controversies surrounding the history, theory, and practice of customary international law as it reexamines customary law's increasingly important role in world affairs. It incorporates the expertise of distinguished authors to probe many difficult issues that remain unresolved concerning the doctrine of customary law. At the same time, this book engages in a profound exploration of the practical role of customary international law in a variety of important fields, including humanitarian law, human rights law, and air and space law.

This is the first book to explore the concept of 'Grotian Moments'. Named for Hugo Grotius, whose masterpiece De jure belli ac pacis helped marshal in the modern system of international law, Grotian Moments are transformative developments that generate the unique conditions for accelerated formation of customary international law. In periods of fundamental change, whether by technological advances, the commission of new forms of crimes against humanity, or the development of new means of warfare or terrorism, customary international law may form much more rapidly and with less state practice than is normally the case to keep up with the pace of developments. The book examines the historic underpinnings of the Grotian Moment concept, provides a theoretical framework for testing its existence and application, and analyzes six case studies of potential Grotian Moments: Nuremberg, the continental shelf, space law, the Yugoslavia Tribunal's Tadic decision, the 1999 NATO intervention in Serbia and the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

States often regard themselves bound by treaty rules which have developed under customary international law, even though many of the treaties themselves have not been ratified. The Law of the Sea Convention, for instance, has generated new customary rules which modified the 1958 Geneva Conventions. These & many other issues are dealt with clearly & systematically in this informative handbook on the relations between written & unwritten international law. The conclusions of the first edition of Customary International Law & Treaties were largely confirmed by the International Court of Justice in the Nicaragua Case. This fully revised second edition, while basing itself on the original version, brings the subject up to date.