Principles of Public International Law

Description

Public international law, often known simply as international law, is primarily concerned with the system of legal norms which govern relations between international persons such as states and international institutions. The scope of international law wide and includes such matters as the maintenance of peaceful relations between states, the control of the use of force, the protection of human rights, the preservation of the environment and the regulation of resource use. In order to be able to understand these substantive areas of international law, it is necessary to have a firm grounding in the principles of international law which underpin them. It is the purpose of this course to provide such a foundation.

The course will focus on the following topics:
•  The Characteristics and Sources of International Law;
•  The Law of Treaties;
•  International Personality;
•  Acquisition of Territory;
•  Jurisdiction and Immunity from Jurisdiction; and
•  State Responsibility.

Students should note that Laws 324 is a pre-requisite for a number of advancing international law courses (see individual course descriptions for details).