CLASS 2 – THE SOURCES OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
Overview Literature:
Henriksen:
- Chapter 2;
- Chapter 3.
Cases:
- ICJ, North Sea Continental Shelf Cases
Other materials:
- The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT);
- Knowledge clips class 2;
- The Guardian news articles ‘Bush kills global warming treaty
- The BBC news article ‘US notifies UN of Paris climate deal pull-out’
- White House announcement
Learning objectives: At the end of this class, students:
- Are able to find an authoritative list of sources of international law;
- Are able to explain how the consent to be bound is reflected in each of the
sources of international law;
- Understand the hierarchy of sources of international law;
- Understand the legal nature of customary international law;
- Understand the legal nature treaty law;
- Can apply the sources of law to real cases.
, Notes
- Consensual theory: consent in order to be bound, reflected in each of the
sources of international law
- Expression of the state’s will: explicit or implicit
Article 38 ICJ Statute
- International conventions (treaties) primary
- International custom primary
- General principles of law primary
- (Judicial decisions and the teachings of highly qualified publicists)
secondary/supplementary
Difference primary and secondary/supplementary sources:
Supplementary sources aren’t sources on their own, they explain the primary
sources of law.
Formation of a treaty:
States negotiate the text states adopt the text states express consent to be
bound; signing or ratification/approval/acceptance or accession treaty enters
into force treaty becomes binding on state parties
Acceptance and approval: same legal effect as ratification
Accession: become a party to a treaty already negotiated and signed by other
states. Occurs after the treaty has entered into force.
Kyoto Protocol & Paris Agreement: treaties to protect the environment.
Kyoto Protocol
- UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
- Adopted: 1997
- Distinction between industrialised and developing countries
Paris agreement
- UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
- Adopted: 2005
- No distinction
Withdrawal Kyoto Protocol
- Expression of consent
US signed but not yet ratified
Article 24
Can US withdraw?
- Not a party, no need to withdraw US just ‘withdrawing signature’
- Why withdraws the signature? It could be binding to the US: article 18/80
VCLT?
Withdrawal Paris agreement
- US accepted in 2016
- Art. 20
- Art. 21: entry into force
- Article 28 decides when a party can withdraw (time period)
Can US withdraw?
- Art. 28: time limit of 3 years from entry into force + 1 year from notification of
withdrawal withdrawal took effect 4/11/2020
Overview Literature:
Henriksen:
- Chapter 2;
- Chapter 3.
Cases:
- ICJ, North Sea Continental Shelf Cases
Other materials:
- The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT);
- Knowledge clips class 2;
- The Guardian news articles ‘Bush kills global warming treaty
- The BBC news article ‘US notifies UN of Paris climate deal pull-out’
- White House announcement
Learning objectives: At the end of this class, students:
- Are able to find an authoritative list of sources of international law;
- Are able to explain how the consent to be bound is reflected in each of the
sources of international law;
- Understand the hierarchy of sources of international law;
- Understand the legal nature of customary international law;
- Understand the legal nature treaty law;
- Can apply the sources of law to real cases.
, Notes
- Consensual theory: consent in order to be bound, reflected in each of the
sources of international law
- Expression of the state’s will: explicit or implicit
Article 38 ICJ Statute
- International conventions (treaties) primary
- International custom primary
- General principles of law primary
- (Judicial decisions and the teachings of highly qualified publicists)
secondary/supplementary
Difference primary and secondary/supplementary sources:
Supplementary sources aren’t sources on their own, they explain the primary
sources of law.
Formation of a treaty:
States negotiate the text states adopt the text states express consent to be
bound; signing or ratification/approval/acceptance or accession treaty enters
into force treaty becomes binding on state parties
Acceptance and approval: same legal effect as ratification
Accession: become a party to a treaty already negotiated and signed by other
states. Occurs after the treaty has entered into force.
Kyoto Protocol & Paris Agreement: treaties to protect the environment.
Kyoto Protocol
- UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
- Adopted: 1997
- Distinction between industrialised and developing countries
Paris agreement
- UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
- Adopted: 2005
- No distinction
Withdrawal Kyoto Protocol
- Expression of consent
US signed but not yet ratified
Article 24
Can US withdraw?
- Not a party, no need to withdraw US just ‘withdrawing signature’
- Why withdraws the signature? It could be binding to the US: article 18/80
VCLT?
Withdrawal Paris agreement
- US accepted in 2016
- Art. 20
- Art. 21: entry into force
- Article 28 decides when a party can withdraw (time period)
Can US withdraw?
- Art. 28: time limit of 3 years from entry into force + 1 year from notification of
withdrawal withdrawal took effect 4/11/2020
