Researching International Environmental Law

CJIELP TrainingJane Thompson, Wise Law

LibrarySeptember 20, 2007

Electronic Research Guides for Int’l Environmental Law

ASIL Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law: IEL - http://www.asil.org/resource/env1.htm E.B. Wms. (Georgetown) Library Int’l Legal Research Research Guides & Tutorials - http://www.ll.georgetown.edu/intl/guides/InternationalEnvironmentalLaw.cfm (IEL Guide) & http://www.ll.georgetown.edu/tutorials/intl/index.cfm (Treaties Tutorial) Leanne Walther (CU), Treaty Research Guide – http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/gd/treaty-guide.htmStephanie Weigman, Researching Non-U.S. Treaties, http://www.llrx.com/features/non_ustreaty.htm

Int’l Environmental Law: Texts and Reference Tools Guruswamy & Doran, International Environmental Law in a Nutshell (3rd ed. 2007, on Reserve)Kiss & Shelton, Int’l Envtl. Law (3rd ed. 2004)Guide to Int’l Legal Research (annual, GWU, in Reference) Parry and Grant, Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Int’l Law (2d ed. 2004)

IEL: Current AwarenessCurrent Awareness

BNA, International Environment Reporter (biweekly) and BNA International Environment Daily via LawpacGreenwire (daily news service)—full text on LexisNexisOnline Discussion Lists (see ASIL Guide) and blogs—e.g., Int’l Envtl. Law BlogABA International Lawyer (Year-in-Review) and Env’t, Energy & Resources Law The Year-in-ReviewInt’l yearbooks, e.g., Yearbook of European Environmental Law & Yearbook of Int’l Environmental Law

BNA Int’l Environment Reporter

Greenwire

IEL: Secondary Sources

Books on IEL topicsLawpac and Chinook, Prospector, FirstSearch WorldCat catalogs

Periodical articles on IEL topicsLAWPAC: LegalTrac, ILP, HeinOnline, Academic Search Premier (published); SSRN & bePress (preprint)Chinook E-Resources: Environmental Issues subject guide (PAIS Int’l, Engineering Village 2, EnviroNetBase)

Chinook: E-Resources

Chinook E-Resources: Environmental Issues Subject Guide

PAIS International

Primary Sources of International Law: Art. 38(1) of the ICJ Statute

International conventions [treaties]International custom, as evidence of a general practice accepted as lawGeneral principles of law recognized by civilized nations Judicial decisions and teachings of the most highly qualified publicists of the various nations (as a subsidiary source)

Research Strategy for IELFind TREATIES

Determine what treaties exist in IELLocate the authoritative text of and citation to a treatyDetermine if the treaty is in force and with what parties and reservationsInterpret the treaty by consulting drafting/legislative history, judicial interpretations, and implementing legislation and regulations

Research Strategy for IEL (cont.)

Find CUSTOMARY LAWNational legislationDiplomatic notes and correspondenceStatements/votes by gov’ts in int’l forumsRatification of treaties with obligationsOpinions of legal advisersRestatements of law by scholars & jurists

Research Strategy for EIL (cont.)

Find Subsidiary Means:Judicial decisions • ICJ (World Court) judgments & advisory

opinions • Judicial or arbitral tribunals, some are

created by treaties, e.g., Int’l Tribunal for the Law of the Sea

Scholarly writings• Legal texts adopted by scientific &

professional associations, e.g., Int’l Law Commission

Research Strategy for IEL (cont.)

Find new sources of Law (“Soft Law”)

ResolutionsRecommendationsCodes of practiceGuidelinesStatementsDeclarations of principles

Treaties: Process and Terminology

Adoption: negotiate and agree on textSignature: representatives of participating nations sign or initial treatyEntry into Force: beginning of the period of the binding effect of a treaty; treaty may provide for a fixed date, or the deposit of a specified number of ratifications, before it becomes effectiveRatification/Acceptance/Approval: consent of signatories to be bound by the treaty (incl. int’l & domestic procedures)Accession: consent of non-signatory nations to be bound by the treaty

TREATIESHow to identify EXISTING IEL TREATIES

Guruswamy, Int’l Environmental Law in a Nutshell (3rd ed. 2007) “table of treaties”Documents compilations, e.g., Sands & Galizzi, Documents in Int’l Environmental Law (2d ed. 2004)International Protection of the Environment series (ICEL, qtrly updates) and Int’l Envtl. Law: Multilateral Treaties (3x/yr. updates)—print sourcesEISIL: Electronic Information System for Int’l Law (Basic Sources) – http://www.eisil.orgECOLEX: A Gateway to Environmental Law – http://www.ecolex.org/ ENTRI: Envt’l Treaties & Resource Indicators - http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/entri/index.jspEESI: International Energy Treaties - http://lawweb.colorado.edu/eesi/ Treaty Resources by Topic (BU Law Library) - http://www.bu.edu/lawlibrary/research/international/bibliographies/treaties_subjects.html

Treaties: Locating Authoritative TextMultilateral treaties

United Nations Treaty Collection - http://untreaty.un.org/ (Go to Reference Desk for access)Older indexes: World Treaty Index; Multilateral Treaties: Index and Current Status

Treaty Secretariat web sites - EISIL (most IEL treaties) – http://www.eisil.org/ or UNEP Convention Secretariats (UNEP treaties) - http://www.unep.org/U.S. treaties

United States Treaties (UST) and TIAS series, 1950- (print, HeinOnline, WL, L/N); older treaties in U.S. Statutes at Large and Bevans (1776-1949) compilationKAV Agreements (unofficial; HeinOnline, microfiche); Current Treaty Index also provides access to these Thomas (Senate treaty documents, 1975-; links to GPO texts) – http://thomas.loc.gov

Recent U.S. and non-U.S. treatiesInternational Legal Materials (unofficial; HeinOnline, WL, L/N)

Treaties: Locating Authoritative Text

Treaty Secretariat web sitesUse EISIL web site to get links and citations to official text – http://www.eisil.org/ UNEP Convention Secretariats – http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=43&ArticleID=234&l=en

Treaties: Locating Authoritative TextUnited States treaties

Article II Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution gives the president the power "by and with the advice and consent of the Senate to make treaties, provided two-thirds of the Senators present concur." Article VI states that the Constitution and "the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land."United States Treaties (UST) and TIAS series, 1950- (print, HeinOnline, WL, L/N); Older treaties published in U.S. Statutes at Large and Bevans (1776-1949) compilation. Access also via Kavass, US Treaty Index: 1776-2000 consolidation (print).KAV Agreements (unofficial; HeinOnline, microfiche); Current Treaty Index also provides access to these

Link to Full Text

Treaties: Locating Authoritative Text

How to Find the official TEXT of treaties from regional organizations:

EISIL: Electronic Info System for IEL – http://www.eisil.org (regional orgs. page)Council of Europe (COE) - http://conventions.coe.int/ European Union (EU) – http://eur-lex.europa.eu/

Citing to Treaties

Check citation in EISIL database – http://www.eisil.org if available (“more info” link)A Uniform System of Citation (Bluebook), rule 21.4.5 (on reserve in the Law Library)If U.S. is a party to a multilateral treaty:

For U.S., cite to U.S.T., Stat., T.I.A.S., etc.Treaty name, date, [vol.] U.S.T. [p.], [vol.] U.N.T.S. [p.]

Treaties: Status (Multilateral)How to determine if a treaty is IN FORCE and with what PARTIES and RESERVATIONS: multilateral treaties

UN Treaty Collection: Status of Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary-General (500+ major treaties; go to Reference Desk for access) – http://untreaty.un.org/ Treaty Secretariat web sitesECOLEX Treaty Status Tables – http://www.ecolex.org/ If UN treaty, call UN Office of Legal Affairs, Treaty Section (NY) - 212-963-5048, or e-mail - treaty@un.org If US is the depositary for a multilateral treaty: U.S. State Dept. web site, http://www.state.gov/s/l/treaty/depositary/

Status of Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Sec’y-General

Treaties: Status (US)How to determine if a treaty is IN FORCE and with what PARTIES and RESERVATIONS: US treaties

Treaties in Force (State Dept., Jan. 1, 2007) - http://www.state.gov/s/l/treaty/treaties/2007/ or A Guide to the United States Treaties in Force (both print, HeinOnline)

• updated by State Dept.’s Treaty Actions (January, 2007) – http://www.state.gov/s/l/treaty/c3428.htm

• updated by State Dept.’s Treaties Pending in the Senate (Sept. 4, 2007) - http://www.state.gov/s/l/treaty/pending/ and Senate Treaty Page - http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/legislative/d_three_sections_with_teasers/treaties.htm

Call Office of the Legal Adviser for Treaty Affairs, U.S. Dept. of State, 202-647-1345 or e-mail: treatyoffice@state.gov

Treaties in Force as of Jan. 1, 2007

Treaties: Interpretation

Drafting History: “travaux preparatoires” - http://www.nyulawglobal.org/globalex/Travaux_Preparatoires.htm (Jonathan Pratter)Legislative History (U.S.)

Thomas (treaty docs: texts & history) – http://thomas.loc.gov/home/treaties/treaties.html

Judicial interpretations (Shepard’s United States Citations in print), and implementing legislation and regulations

CUSTOMARY INT’L LAWFind US nat’l legislation, diplomatic documents, opinions of legal advisers, etc.

U.S. Dept. of State, Office of the Legal Adviser• Digest of United States Practice in International Law

(Law Library) updated by American Journal of International Law section on “contemporary practice of the US relating to int’l law” - http://www.asil.org/ajil/ajilindx.htm

U.S. statutes and administrative materials - Envtl. L. Rptr. (ELI)THOMAS (fed. legislation) – http://thomas.loc.gov USA.gov (agency portal) – http://www.usa.gov/

American Journal of International Law

CUSTOMARY INT’L LAW (cont.)

Find Non-US national legislation, diplomatic documents, opinions of legal advisers, etc.

ECOLEX: Nat’l Legislation – http://www.ecolex.orgInt’l Encyclopedia of Laws: Envtl. Law (cites & summaries)Foreign Law: Current Sources of Codes (cites)Westlaw’s ENFLEX-INT database (envtl. health & safety)Country yearbooks (Hein Online’s Foreign/Int’l Database) and Yearbook of IEL (Lawpac)Int’l Protection of the Environment series (Lawpac) Library of Congress – http://www.loc.gov

• Guide to Law Online: Nations of the World• Global Legal Information Network (GLIN) (cites & summaries)

World Law Guide (Lexadin) - http://www.lexadin.nl/wlg/ See Jane for additional sources

CUSTOMARY INT’L LAW (cont.)

Find Statements & Votes by Gov’ts in Int’l Organizations and Forums

UN Official Documents System, 1992- (Go to Reference Desk for access)Access UN (1944-) index via Lawpac (full-text documents available in CU Gov’t Pubs Library) - http://www.colorado.edu/Law/lawlib/databases.htm International organization web sites

DECISIONS

Find INT’L COURT OF JUSTICE judgments and advisory opinions

ICJ web site (1947-) – http://www.icj-cij.org/ On Westlaw; Law Library has hardcopy opinions

Find OTHER tribunal decisionsInt’l Legal Materials (HeinOnline, LN, WL)Int’l Envtl. Law Reports—nat’l & int’l (Law Library)LexisNexis, Westlaw, Internet: e.g. EU’s EUR-LexECOLEX: Court Decisions and tribunal web sites

Scholarly Writings

Int’l Law CommissionWeb site - http://www.un.org/law/ilc/ Yearbook of the ILC (Law Library)UN Official Documents System, 1992- (Go to Reference Desk for access)

Int’l Law Association - http://www.ila-hq.org/

IEL “SOFT LAW”Burhenne, Int’l Environmental Soft Law: Collection of Relevant Instruments (Law Library)ECOLEX (Lit) – http://www.ecolex.org EISIL: Electronic Info System for Int’l Law – http://www.eisil.org Int’l Legal Materials (HeinOnline, WL & L/N)Yearbook of International Environmental LawInternational organization web sites