INTERNATIONAL LAW I

The effectiveness of a legal order is based on The norms SOURCES OF LAW §§ that govern the behavior SUBJECTS of the members of a particular society The effectiveness of a legal order is based on sanctions

REACH OF NATIONAL JURISDICTION Territorial State responsibility Actions taken by state officials Standard of care: national or international Extraterritorial Universal crimes

WHAT IS INTERNATIONAL LEGAL ORDER? Subjects of law Who are the participants in international legal order? States, international organizations (sometimes private individuals) Horizontal system of sovereign states Where is the law, who makes it? No formal machinery => law comes into effect by general consent of states Sanctions => What is the basis of obligation? States consider international law binding

CONCEPT OF INTERNATIONAL LAW Different ways to approach: Public international law Comparative law Private international law

1. PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW

International law, traditional approach STATE A STATE B ”International Law is the body of rules generally recognized by civilized nations as governing their conduct towards each other and towards each other’s subjects.” (Collins English Dictionary)

EXAMPLES OF PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW Sources of international law Scope of international law International personality State territory State succession State responsibility to aliens Law of the sea Environmental law International dispute settlement Law of war

SUBJECTS OF PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW States Prerequisites of statehood: Territorial sovereignty A population A government capable of controlling the territory and the people entering into international relations Limitations to territorial sovereignty Servitudes

SUBJECTS American-Canadian arbitration tribunal: United States v. Canada, 1941 A Canadian company built a lead and zinc smelting company in Trail, British Colombia, 10 miles of the U.S. border Some of the emissions were being carried down the Columbia River Valley and caused damage to land and property in Washington Canada agreed to pay for damages The U.S. submitted a question, whether the Trail Smelter should be required to refrain from causing damage in the state of Washington SUBJECTS American-Canadian arbitration tribunal: Under the principles of international law, no state has the right to use or permit the use of its territory in such a manner as to cause injury to the territory of another state

SUBJECTS OF PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW (cont.) States International organisations Intergovernmental organisations Non-governmental organisations SUBJECTS

THE UNITED NATIONS (1) SUBJECTS Goals Maintenance of peace and security in the world Promotion of world wide economic and social co-operation Promotion of the protection of human rights Achievements by universal respect for international law

THE UNITED NATIONS (2) SUBJECTS Organs General Assembly Security Council Secretariat Economic and Social Council International Court of Justice Resolves legal disputes between sovereign states Issues advisory opinions asked by international organizations UN General Assembly Security Council chambers Peace Palace, seat of the ICJ

WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION HISTORY Bretton Woods Conference 1944 => General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade GATT 1947 1986 -1994 Uruguay Round The World Trade Organisation Agreement 1994 SUBJECTS

WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION Members: 149 states (Dec 2005) Targets of the WTO: Implement the WTO Agreement and its annexes Act as a forum for ongoing multilateral trade negotiations Serve as a tribunal for resolving disputes Review the trade policies and practices of member states SUBJECTS

Dispute Settlement Body Dispute Settlement Panels THE WTO STRUCTURE SUBJECTS Ministerial Conference General Council General Council meeting as Trade Policy Review Body Council for Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Appellate Body Council for Trade in Goods meeting as Dispute Settlement Body Council for Trade in Services Dispute Settlement Panels Director-General of the Secretariat Committees Standing Committees Modified from Ray August. International Business Law. 2000. Prentice Hall. New Jersey.

SUBJECTS WTO AGREEMENT Valid from 1994 Consists of multilateral trade agreements on Trade in Goods (GATT) Trade in Services (GATS) Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Settlement of Disputes (DSU) Trade Policy Review Mechanisms (TPRM) SUBJECTS

Commodity arrangements WTO: GATT Principles SUBJECTS MOST- FAVOURED- NATION RULE NATIONAL TREATMENT RULE PROTECTION THROUGH TARIFFS TRANSPARENCY Regional integration Commodity arrangements Escape clause Exceptions Export controls

SOURCES OF INTERNATIONAL LAW International conventions International customary law General principles of law Judicial decisions Teachings of the most highly qualified publicists of various nations Art 38(1) of the Statute of the International Court of Justice:

SOURCES WHAT GIVES THE Conventions Practices Principles Court rulings Experts’ statements the force of international law?

SOURCES Case Sei Fujii v. State, 1952 Mr. Sei Fujii, a Japanese alien, purchased real estate in California shortly after World War II Because he was ineligible for citizenship under U.S. naturalization laws, a trial court held that his ownership of the land violated California’s alien land law and that the land escheated to the state Mr. Sei Fujii appealed and an intermediate appellate court held that the alien land law violated the UN Charter’s human rights provisions and it reversed the decision of the trial court. The state of California appealed to the state Supreme Court

FISHERIES CASE UK v. Norway 1951 SOURCES British fishermen refrained from fishing in Norwegian coastal waters for almost 300years In the early 20th century they, equipped with improved and powerful equipment, entered Norway’s coastal region Norway enacted legislation that formally delineated a zone along the Norwegian coast as reserved exclusively for fishing by its nationals Norway strictly enforced this law by seizing any British vessels caught fishing in the restricted region Britain instituted proceedings before the International Court of Justice arguing that Norway’s claim to the coastal waters violated a generally accepted customary rule of international law

Fisheries Case (cont.), International Court of Justice: SOURCES Norway had been claiming the disputed waters since 1812 Most countries of the world, including Britain, have never objected ICC: General toleration of practices give them the force of law