The Cambridge Companion to International Law

Description

This intellectually rigorous introduction to international law encourages readers to engage with multiple aspects of the topic: as 'law' directing and shaping its subjects; as a technique for governing the world of states and beyond statehood; and as a framework within which several critical and constructivist projects are articulated. The articles situate international law in its historical and ideological context and examine core concepts such as sovereignty, jurisdiction and the state. Attention is also given to its operation within international institutions and in dispute settlement, and a separate section is devoted to international law's 'projects': protecting human rights, eradicating poverty, the conservation of resources, the regulation of international trade and investment and the establishment of international order. The diverse group of contributors draws from disciplinary orientations ranging from positivism to postmodernism to ensure that this book is informed theoretically and politically, as well as grounded in practice.

James Crawford is Whewell Professor of International Law and a Fellow of Jesus College, Cambridge. He was a member of the United Nations International Law Commission from 1992 to 2001 and Special Rapporteur on State Responsibility from 1997 to 2001. He has also been a member of the Australian Law Reform Commission. In addition to scholarly work on statehood, self-determination, collective rights and international responsibility, he has appeared frequently before the International Court of Justice and other international tribunals and is actively engaged as expert, counsel and arbitrator. Martti Koskenniemi is Professor of International Law at the University of Helsinki and Director of the Erik Castren Institute of International Law and Human Rights. He worked as diplomat with the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs from 1978 to 1994, representing Finland in a number of international institutions and conferences. As member of the UN International Law Commission (2002-6) he chaired the Study group on the 'Fragmentation of International Law'. He has written widely on international law topics and his present research interests cover the theory and history of the field.

'What makes the book exceptional is the fact that the authors of each chapter present political and theoretical issues from both traditional and critical perspectives, providing valuable insight for a public interested in each field of international law.' CEU Political Science Journal 'What the Cambridge Companion will do is to introduce the reader to international law's underlying contradictions, to its regressive tendencies, and to its liberating potential. International law, like all law, is a tool - and as a 'science of the superstructure' it is a tool used mainly to conserve and perpetuate the status quo; the Cambridge Companion comes at it from a decidedly critical (read: progressive) bend, exposes its biases, but also demonstrates how 'small change' may realise its power to liberate and protect.' Antonios Tzanakopoulos, British Yearbook of International Law