Style Guide for the Work of the

International Law CommissionCodification Division, Office of Legal Affairs

November 2015

Introduction

1. The International Law Commission was established by General Assembly resolution 174 (II) of 21 November 1947. It reports to the General Assembly annually. Its report is part of the Official Records of the General Assembly and bears the symbol of the Assembly, the session of the Assembly for the reporting period and a supplement number (e.g. Official Records of the General Assembly, Sixtieth session, Supplement No. 10 (A/60/10)). The Commission began reporting at its first session in 1949. Accordingly, three years separate the Commission sessions from the Assembly sessions. A typeset version of the report of the Commission is also included in the Yearbook of the International Law Commission, vol. II (Part Two). The word Yearbook, followed by suspension points (ellipsis) and the year, denotes a reference to the Yearbook (e.g. Yearbook… 1971, vol. II (Part Two)). Usually, symbols of United Nations documents are comprised capital letters combined with figures. Mention of such a symbol indicates a reference to a United Nations document (e.g. the documents of the Commission bear the symbol A/CN.4/1, 2, 3…). The “A” refers to the “Assembly” and “CN.4” to the “Commission.”

2. This style guide is prepared by the Codification Division of the Office of Legal Affairs, which serves as the secretariat of the Commission. It seeks to put together in a single document the stylistic practice concerning the preparation of the report of the Commission and its related documents, not including the Yearbook,1 with a view to ensuring concordance in the preparation of the report. It is also particularly intended to assist the Commission members, the Special Rapporteurs and the staff members of the Secretariat involved in the preparation of documentation relating to the Commission.

3. Unless otherwise specifically provided, the style guide is consistent with the United Nations Editorial Manual Online, http://dd.dgacm.org/editorialmanual/, which remains the authoritative statement of style for matters not expressly covered by the present style guide.

I. Style

4. In accordance with article 20 of its statute, the Commission shall submit its drafts in the form of articles to the General Assembly together with a commentary containing (a) adequate presentation of precedents and other relevant data, including treaties, judicial decisions and doctrine; and (b) conclusions defining the extent of agreement on each point in the practice of States, divergencies and disagreements which exist, as well as arguments invoked in favour of one or another solution.

A. General

1 The Yearbook is edited by the United Nations Office at Geneva.

5. The length of a given report of the Commission is not determined a priori; it depends on a number of factors, such as the duration of the session, the number and nature of the topics discussed during a particular session, and the inclusion in the report of a complete set of draft articles, guidelines or conclusions on a topic,2 together with commentaries, as well as the inclusion of annexes. The Commission has noted that in matters of legal research – and codification of international law demands legal research –limitations of the length of documents cannot be imposed,3 and this view has been endorsed by the General Assembly in its resolutions.4 Accordingly, page limitations have not been applied to the reports of the Commission.

It may nevertheless be noted that, at its sixty-third session, in 2011,5 the Commission adopted the following conclusions with regard to the role of Special Rapporteurs, noting that, in view of their key role in the work of the Commission, they are expected to:

(a) Prepare each year a substantive report on their respective topic;(b) Make every effort to limit the length of each report to no more than 50 pages;(c) Submit their full report to the Secretariat at least six weeks before the start of each session.

6. The text of the report is written in Times New Roman, size 12, line-spaced 1.5 lines, and with tabs of 1.27 cm. Please note: The paragraphs of the report should be justified and soft-hyphens should be avoided at all times.

7. The text and footnotes of the report should normally follow the spelling in the Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 12th edition.

8. The name of a member of the Commission is cited in full in the body of the text the first time it is mentioned in a chapter. In footnotes, the name is abbreviated by indicating the initial and surname only at first occurrence or just the surname afterwards.

Example:Mr. Gerald Fitzmaurice [body of the text]Mr. G. Fitzmaurice [footnote] then Fitzmaurice [footnote]

B. Structure

9. The report of the Commission is divided into chapters, sections and headings, and subheadings appear within each chapter or section. The headings and subheadings within each individual chapter or section are also reflected in the table of contents so as to make consultation of the report by Governments and delegations easier. The topics are reflected in chapters of the report in the order in which they are discussed in the Commission at a particular session.

10. The report starts with a summary of contents, which contains a list of the different chapters and annexes only. It is followed by an exhaustive table of contents,

2 Yearbook… 1977, vol. II (Part Two), pp. 132-133, para. 126. 3 Ibid., p. 132, para. 123. See also Yearbook… 1982, vol. II (Part Two), p. 123, paras. 268 and 270. 4 See General Assembly resolutions 32/151, 34/141, 35/163, 36/114, 37/111 and subsequent annual General Assembly resolutions on the report of the Commission.5 Official records of the General Assembly, Sixty-sixth session, Supplement No. 10 (A/66/10). para. 372, to be reproduced in Yearbook… 2011, vol. II (Part Two).

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which lists each subheading and draft article adopted. The exception is when the Commission completes a second or first reading of a topic; such topics appear as the first substantive chapters. 11. The titles of the chapters of the report are in bold letters and Roman numerals:

Example:Chapter IIntroduction

12. It should be noted that the first three chapters of the report of the Commission contain, respectively, the Introduction, the Summary of the work the Commission at its […] session and Specific issues on which comments would be of particular interest to the Commission. Chapters II and III were introduced to make the report user friendly and are distributed to States in advance of the publication of the report, and also posted on the website of the Commission.

Please note: The first word of the title of the chapters should be capitalized.

13. Headings and subheadings are indented and lettered or numbered as: A, B, C,…; 1, 2, 3…; (a), (b), (c),...; (i), (ii), (iii),…; a, b, c,…; i, ii, iii,… depending on the sequence of headings and subheadings employed.

14. Each paragraph is numbered in Arabic numerals. Enumerations within a paragraph are indicated as (a)…; (b)…; and (c)…, followed by (i)…; (ii)…; (iii)…, depending on the sequence of enumeration used within a paragraph.

Example:In her report, the Special Rapporteur addressed a number of issues, including (a) the scope of application; (b) the relationship between the draft articles and customary international law; and (c) the final form that the draft articles should take, i.e. (i) a framework convention; (ii) a model law; or (iii) a declaration of principles would be the preferred outcome.

15. The section headings usually follow the following pattern: A. Introduction, B. Consideration of the topic at the present session, C. Text of the draft articles on [a topic] provisionally adopted so far by the Commission or Text of the draft articles on [a topic] adopted by the Commission on [first]/[second] reading.

16. The section headings appear indented in bold lower case letters and in alphabetical numbers as follows:

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Example:Title heading, e.g. A. Introduction

…Title heading, e.g. B. Consideration of the topic at the present session

…Title heading, e.g. C. Texts of draft articles on responsibility of international organizations provisionally adopted so far by the Commission

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. 1. Text of the draft articles

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. 2. Text of the draft articles and commentaries thereto adopted by the Commission at its […] session

Please note: Pursuant to its Statute, the Commission shall prepare “drafts”. Accordingly, it is important to maintain the practice of using the word “draft” to precede any provision whether “article”, “principle”, “conclusion” or “guideline” when referred to in reports of the Special Rapporteurs, in the summaries of debates, in commentaries, in section titles, in the title of an entire set of articles, in cross-references in the texts of individual provisions, except in the titles of individual provisions adopted by the Drafting Committee or the Commission itself (on either first or second reading.

Please note: In situations where there is a working group or a study group, its work may be reflected in a separate section or in an annex to the report of the Commission.

17. When the Commission completes the second reading in relation to a topic, there are separate sections that deal with the Recommendation of the Commission (sect. C) and Tribute to the Special Rapporteur (sect. D), respectively, with consequent renumbering of section C into section E.

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Examples: An entire set of provisions is referred to as the “draft articles” (or

draft guidelines or draft conclusions) on ...." Within the text of each provision, any references to other provisions

should indicate "draft", e.g., "Without prejudice to draft article 1 or draft guideline 1…”

However, each provision is referred to as "Article 1" or "Article 2" and not "Draft article 1", or "Draft article 2"

18. Section A dealing with the “Introduction” contains a brief historical summary of the topic from its inception in the programme of work of the Commission to developments in the session immediately preceding the session which is the subject of the report. Only key developments should be reflected in the introductory narrative. It is extremely important to ensure that the information in the introductory section is accurate, as it is repeated verbatim annually for the duration of the topic.

Please note: In order to condense the introductory section, references to previous reports of the Special Rapporteur should be reported collectively.

Example:The Commission, from its thirty-second (1980) to its thirty-sixth sessions (1984), received and considered five reports by the Special Rapporteur. (Place footnote to the five reports.)

19. Section B dealing with the “Consideration of the topic at the present session” contains in chapeau paragraphs a brief summary of the work accomplished by the Commission during the session to which the report relates. Typically, it registers the report of the Special Rapporteur which was before the Commission for its consideration; any other documents before the Commission, such as studies by the Secretariat and comments and observations by Governments and/or international organizations issued in connection with that topic; the plenary meetings of the Commission at which the particular report was considered; any referral by the Commission of any draft articles to the Drafting Committee; the establishment of any working group or any other framework to advance the consideration of the topic; the consideration and adoption of the report of the Drafting Committee; the adoption of commentaries; expression of appreciation to Special Rapporteurs upon completion of the first reading; and any other decision or recommendations taken by the Commission on that topic.

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Example:C. Recommendation of the Commission

[text of recommendation]D. Tribute to the Special Rapporteur, Mr. James

Crawford [text of resolution of the Commission]

E. Texts of the draft articles on responsibility of international organizations adopted by the Commission at its sixty-third session

20. Section B is often further subdivided into subheadings containing a summary of the plenary debates on a particular topic. The summary reflects the introduction of the report by the Special Rapporteur, the debate by the Commission and the concluding remarks by the Special Rapporteur.

21. The subheadings of section B appear indented in bold lower case letters and Arabic numerically numbered follows:

Example:

Title sub-heading, e.g. 1. Introduction by the Special Rapporteur…

Title sub-heading, e.g. 2. Summary of the debate…

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Example:56. The Commission considered the report of the Drafting Committee at its 2806th meeting, held on 28 May 2004, and adopted on first reading a set of 19 draft articles on diplomatic protection (see section C below).

57. At the same meeting, the Commission decided, in accordance with articles 16 and 21 of its statute, to transmit the draft articles (see section C below), through the Secretary-General, to Governments for comments and observations, with the request that such comments and observations be submitted to the Secretary-General by 1 January 2006.

58. At its 2827th meeting, held on 3 August 2004, the Commission expressed its deep appreciation for the outstanding contribution the two Special Rapporteurs, Messrs. Mohamed Bennouna and John Dugard, had made to the treatment of the topic through their scholarly research and vast experience, thus enabling the Commission to bring to a successful conclusion its first reading of the draft articles on diplomatic protection.

Title sub-heading, e.g. 3. Concluding remarks by the Special Rapporteur

22. In order to enhance readability of the report, it should as far as possible be organized around particular themes or clusters even if the Special Rapporteur introduces his or her report in one single intervention. The division into headings and subheadings may reflect the organization of the debate and/or that of the Special Rapporteur’s report. Thus, the subheadings could be organized further and appear indented in bold in lower case letters, Arabic numerically and alphabetically numbered as follows:

Example:Title sub-heading, e.g. 1. Clean hands doctrine

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (a) Introduction by the Special Rapporteur

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (b) Summary of the debate

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (c) Concluding remarks by the Special Rapporteur

…Title sub-heading, e.g. 2. Other issues

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (a) Introduction by the Special Rapporteur

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (b) Summary of the debate

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (c) Concluding remarks by the Special Rapporteur

23. In some cases, this should be done in respect of each article or a cluster of articles under consideration:

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Example:

Title sub-heading, e.g. 1. Draft article 1. Scope of application…

Title sub2-heading, e.g. (a) Introduction by the Special Rapporteur…

Title sub2-heading, e.g. (b) Summary of the debate…

Title sub2-heading, e.g. (c) Concluding remarks by the Special Rapporteur

…Title sub-heading, e.g. 2. Draft article 2. Use of terms

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (a) Introduction by the Special Rapporteur

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (b) Summary of the debate

…Title sub2-heading, e.g. (c) Concluding remarks by the Special Rapporteur

24. Important: While the various topics on the Commission’s agenda are often at different stages of consideration, it is essential that as far as possible a similar approach be followed in the preparation of the draft reports for the topics.

25. Please note: In the event that the Commission is able to consider at the same session a report of the Special Rapporteur and provisionally adopt all draft articles to which the particular report relates, the introductory paragraphs of the Summary of the work of the Commission at that session would also give a brief summary of the issues considered by the Special Rapporteur in his or her report without giving details of the plenary debates. Since the Commission is a collegial body, it is assumed that the commentaries it adopted would have reflected the points of view of the Commission (presentation of precedents and other relevant data, including treaties, judicial decisions and doctrine), and dissenting views, if any, in respect of the draft articles provisionally adopted. Exceptionally, the Commission has reflected the debate on certain aspects of a topic even if it has completed a reading and adopted commentaries thereto; see, for example, draft articles on responsibility of States for internationally wrongful acts (Yearbook… 2001, vol. II (Part Two) and corrigendum, pp. 26–30, chap. IV, sect. B and E, para. 76).

26. Section C dealing with the “text of draft articles on [title] provisionally adopted so far by the Commission” contains, in principle, (1) the entire set of draft articles provisionally adopted by the Commission in relation to a topic, including those adopted during the session to which the report relates; and (2) a set of draft articles and commentaries thereto adopted by the Commission at the session to which the report relates. This section is thus also divided into subheadings.

27. The section subheadings appear indented in bold, in lower case letters and Arabic numerically numbered as follows:

Example:

Title sub-heading, e.g. 1. Text of draft articles on diplomatic protection provisionally adopted so far by the Commission

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…Title sub-heading, e.g. 2. Text of draft articles on diplomatic protection and commentaries thereto provisionally adopted at its fifty-fifth session

28. Where the Commission adopts a complete set of draft articles on first reading the text reads as follows:

Example 1: C. Text of the draft articles on diplomatic protection adopted by the Commission on first reading

1. Text of the draft articles59. The text of the draft articles adopted by the Commission on first reading is reproduced below.

… 2. Text of the draft articles with commentaries thereto

60. The texts of the draft articles and commentaries thereto adopted on first reading by the Commission at its fifty-sixth session, are reproduced below.

Example 2:

C. Text of the draft principles on allocation of loss in the case of transboundary harm arising out of hazardous activities adopted by the Commission on first reading

1. Text of the draft principles 175. The text of the draft principles adopted by the Commission on first

reading is reproduced below.…

2. Text of the draft principles with commentaries thereto 176. The text of the draft principles and commentaries thereto adopted by

the Commission on first reading at its fifty-sixth session are reproduced below.

29. Where the Commission adopts a complete set of draft articles on second reading the text reads as follows:

Example 1: E. Text of the draft articles on responsibility of States for internationally wrongful acts

1. Text of the draft articles76. The text of the draft articles adopted by the Commission at its fifty-third session is reproduced below.

2. Text of the draft articles with commentaries thereto77. The text of the draft articles with commentaries thereto adopted by the Commission at its fifty-third session, are reproduced below.

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Example 2: E. Text of the draft articles on prevention of transboundary harm from hazardous activities

1. Text of the draft articles

97. The text of the draft preamble and draft articles adopted by the Commission at its fifty-third session is reproduced below.

…2. Text of the draft articles with commentaries thereto

98. The text of the draft articles, adopted by the Commission at its fifty-third session, with commentaries thereto, is reproduced below.

30. The texts of draft articles with their respective commentaries thereto adopted at a particular session are reproduced sequentially. The text of the draft articles appears indented with the title in bold lower case letters as follows:

Example: Draft article 1

Scope of application [text]

Please note: If a number of a draft article changes, the original number is retained in square brackets against the new number (e.g. Draft article 2 [1]). For ease of reference, the Drafting Committee has adopted a practice of indicating the first reading number (as proposed by the Special Rapporteur) in square brackets once the article is renumbered during the second reading. Upon the adoption of the articles on second reading, these references are deleted. Similarly, the Special Rapporteur may present revised texts that retain the original number in square brackets.

31. The paragraphs of the commentary appear in brackets Arabic numerically numbered as follows:

Example: Commentary(1) [text](2) [text]

32. Where the Commission adopts a complete set of draft articles on first reading or on second reading, the text of the draft articles and commentaries thereto are reproduced in their entirety.

C. Footnotes

33. The report of the Commission contains “footnotes”, not “endnotes”. Footnotes are written in Times New Roman, size 10, and single spaced. Footnotes appear in Arabic numerical order.

Please note: The more recent practice, as part of the greening efforts, the footnotes are written in size 10.

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34. In the text, the footnote number follows any closing punctuation. When using a footnote in a sentence, the footnote follows the punctuation (e.g. a comma or a full stop).

Example:… was adopted by the Commission in 2000.6

35. Within footnotes, paragraph(s) are abbreviated as: “para.” or “paras.”; and page(s) are abbreviated as: “p.” or “pp.”

36. All draft articles submitted by Special Rapporteur are reproduced indented in footnotes to the report relating to which the draft articles are first introduced in plenary.

Example:12 The text of draft article 40 proposed by the Special Rapporteur reads as follows:

[text of article]

Example 2:12 The text of draft guideline 1, as proposed by the Special Rapporteur, reads as follows:

[text of guideline]

37. Cross-references within footnotes should normally appear as follows:Examples:12 See Crawford, footnote 1 above, p. 123. The initials of the author in the subsequent references are not necessary.13 See footnote 1 above, p. 123.

Please note: Cross-references should be used only within chapters, not between chapters.

38. If the same author has been referred to previously in the same footnote in respect of different publications, part of the publication cross-referenced with three ellipsis points should be mentioned:

Example:12 Brownlie, Principles…

39. If the cross-reference is to the immediately preceding footnote, the reference appears as follows:

Example:13 Ibid., p. 123.

Please note: Refrain from using Id. or Ibidem.

D. Quotations, punctuation and periods

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40. Double quotations marks (“…”) are used to enclose quoted sentences or paragraphs. Quotations within quotations are enclosed within single quotation marks (“… ‘…’…”). Double quotations marks are also used when defining terms in the Use of terms in the draft articles:

Example 1: The Court said: “Its role to adjudicate the dispute between the parties.”

Example 2:The Court said: “In the Nicaragua case, the ‘effective control of military or paramilitary operations in the course of which the alleged violations’ were committed was the essential test employed rather than ‘overall control’.”

Example 3:“Aggression” means…

41. If a quotation in a paragraph consists of a complete sentence, it should be introduced by a colon and begin with a capital letter. The final punctuation is to be placed inside the quotation marks when it coincides with the end of the sentence.

Example:In its judgment the Court said: “An obligation to cooperate is extant in the relations between the parties.”

42. Any closing punctuation follows the quotation if the full stop is not part of the quotation.

Example:“…could be found in customary law, treaties and judicial

decisions”.

43. It is advisable to separate and indent a text of a block quotation consisting of a long sentence (three lines or more) or a complete paragraph. With Commission documents, quotation marks are required in text for the sake of clarity, for example, to separate blocked text from actual texts, particularly where the quotation exceeds a page and has numbered paragraphs, in which case quotation marks are inserted at the beginning of each paragraph and at the end of the last paragraph.

44. Footnotes within quotations are generally omitted and such omission is indicated in the footnote providing the reference to the quoted text (with the notation “footnote(s) omitted”). If it is necessary to quote both the text and one or more footnotes in that text, the relevant footnotes with original numbering should be quoted directly below the quoted text, within the body of the text, not as a footnote to the body of the text. The final quotation mark should follow the footnote.

45. If words are omitted in the quotation, the omission is indicated by using three ellipsis points (…). Quotation marks do not appear where there is an ellipsis to indicate an omitted paragraph.

E. Abbreviations

46. Numbers are abbreviated as follows:

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Examples:2791st meeting3rd edition

Please note that numbers are used to refer to meetings, but session numbers are written in letters.

47. Chapters and sections are abbreviated without capital letters as follows:Example:chap. XI, sect. A.

48. Terms that should be written in full in running texts are: Charter of the United Nations, United Nations, International Law Commission (or the Commission), General Assembly (or the Assembly), Security Council (or the Council), the International Court of Justice (or the Court), the International Criminal Court and the Secretary-General of the United Nations (or the Secretary-General). Please refer to the United Nations Editorial Manual for further information (http://dd.dgacm.org/editorialmanual/ed-guidelines/style/abbreviations.htm).

49. When common abbreviations are used for journals or yearbooks, the use of punctuation marks in the abbreviation should be avoided. Please note: this is a departure from previous practice and is intended to bring concordance with the practice of the Yearbook. Please note also that the full name should be used on first occurrence. While the full name of the journal should be italicized, the abbreviation should not be so italicized.

Examples:AFDI not A.F.D.I. for Annuaire français de Droit InternationalAJIL not A.J.I.L. for American Journal of International LawEJIL not E.J.I.L. for European Journal of International LawICLQ not I.C.L.Q. for International and Comparative Law QuarterlyILM not I.L.M. for International Legal MaterialsILR not I.L.R. for International Law ReportsRGDIP not R.G.D.I.P. for Revue génerale de droit international publicUNRIAA not U.N.R.I.A.A. nor RIAA (which is commonly used in academic writings) for United Nations, Reports of International Arbitral Awards

50. Other abbreviations include the following:

Examples:AV for Archiv des VölkerrechtsBYBIL for The British Yearbook of International LawFYBIL for Finnish Yearbook of International LawGYBIL for German Yearbook of International LawHILJ for Harvard International Law JournalJYBIL for Japanese Yearbook of International LawNYBIL for Netherlands Yearbook of International LawÖZöR for Österreichische Zeitschrift fűr öffentliches RechtRBDI for Revue belge de droit internationalRDI for Rivista di Diritto InternazionaleZaöRV for Zeitschrift fűr ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht

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51. However, in some situations punctuation marks are retained. Example:

Iran-U.S. C.T.R. not I.U.S.C.T.R.: Iran-United States Claims Tribunal Reports

52. In certain instances, the first name in an abbreviation would be written in full or abridged:

Examples:

Aust. YBIL for Australian Yearbook of International LawCan. YBIL for Canadian Yearbook of International LawChinese JIL for Chinese Journal of International LawItalian YBIL for Italian Yearbook of International Law

53. Please note: Reports of the International Court of Justice or the Permanent Court of International Justice appear as follows:

Examples:I.C.J. Reports for ICJ, Reports of Judgments, Advisory Opinions and OrdersI.C.J. Pleadings for ICJ, Pleadings, Oral Arguments, DocumentsP.C.I.J., Series A for Collection of Judgments (Nos. 1-24: up to and including 1930)P.C.I.J., Series A/B for: Judgments, Orders and Advisory Opinions (Nos.48-80: beginning in 1931

54. Please note: In some cases, the abbreviation is an abridged version of the full title. These appear in italics.

Examples:Annuaire for Annuaire de l’Institut de droit international

ASIL Proceedings for Proceedings of the American Society of International Law

Encyclopaedia for Encyclopaedia of Public International Law Moore, Digest for J.B. Moore, A Digest of International law

(Washington D.C.)Moore, International Arbitrations for J.B. Moore, History and Digest of the International Arbitrations to which the United States has been a Party (Washington, D.C.)

Recueil des cours or in subsequent footnotes as RCADI for Recueil des cours de l’Académie de droit international de la Haye

Repertoire for Repertoire of the Security CouncilRepertory for Repertory of Practice of United Nations organs

55. Please also note: The United Nations Treaty Series appears in full without abbreviation, in accordance with the style of the Yearbook (indicating the volume, the registration number and the page number) as follows:7

7 Note that the page number reference is always to the cover page introducing the treaty in the Treaty Series, and not to the page location of the relevant linguistic version.

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Example: United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1216, No. 19617, p. 151.

F. Capitalization

56. Capital letters are used for: State, Commission, United Nations Secretariat and Government.

57. Capitalization should also be used when referring to a specific court, treaty, convention, etc., on its own: the Court, the Tribunal, the Convention, the Treaty, the Judgment, etc.

58. No capitals letters are used in the text for articles, draft articles (except in respect of an Article of the Charter of the United Nations, at the beginning of a sentence or in a title heading for draft articles).

G. Dates

59. The order of dates appears as follows: day [Arabic] month [written] year [Arabic].

Example: 3 May 2000

60. Please note: In the testatum of a treaty the dates may appear in words.

H. Italics

61. Italics in the body of the text of the report or in footnotes are commonly used for Latin maxims or principles, in the citation of cases and in rare situations for emphasis in text. The citation of books is also in italics.

Examples:lex specialis, jus cogens, erga omnesOil Platforms case Ian Brownlie, Principles of Public International Law, 6th edition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), at p. 34.

Example:The Court cannot, in the present case, give a decision on the preliminary objection as a preliminary matter. The Court would of necessity have to deal with the merits of the request of the applicant State (emphasis supplied).

A list of terms commonly italicized in the Yearbook is included in the annex to this guide.

62. Please note: The citation of journals when abbreviated should not be in italics. See, for example, paragraph 49 above. References to journals and yearbooks when first cited should be in full and italicized:

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Examples:Canadian Yearbook of International Law, vol…Chinese Yearbook of International Law, vol…The British Yearbook of International Law, vol….German Yearbook of International Law, vol…Leiden Journal of International Law, vol…Nordic Journal of International Law, vol…

However, when abbreviated, italicization is not necessary (see para. 51).

63. Commonly used Latin words that appear in the Concise Oxford English Dictionary need not appear in italics:

Example:inter alios

I. Numbers

64. Numbers under 10 are generally expressed in words (eight, not 8) except at the beginning of a sentence, in simple fractions (half a billion dollars), and in isolated references to approximate measures and periods of time (“Income levels have increased over the past hundred years.”). Percentages should be expressed by numeral and “per cent” (“2 per cent”). In tables, percentages may be expressed by numeral and with the symbol “%” (“2%”).

II. Citations8

A. United Nations documents

65. The Yearbook should be the primary source of reference for reports of the Commission. References to reports published in the Yearbook should be cited as follows:

Examples:12 Yearbook… 1964, vol. II, p. 5, paras. 52-65.13 Yearbook… 2000, vol. II (Part Two), p. 54, paras. 52-65.

Please note: Citation of paragraphs is preferred to assure concordance in the working languages of the United Nations.

66. If the report is not yet published in the Yearbook, the citation of the report should refer to the Official Records of the General Assembly.

Example:12 Official Records of the General Assembly, Sixtieth Session, Supplement No. 10 (A/60/10), para. 729.

67. In an immediate subsequent footnote, the citation for a different session report would appear as follows:

8 Please refer also to the United Nations Editorial Manual online: http://dd.dgacm.org/editorialmanual/ed-guidelines/footnotes/footnotes_index.htm.

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Example:13 Ibid., Fifty-seventh Session, Supplement No. 10 (A/57/10), paras. 492-494.

68. An immediate succeeding citation in the same report would appear as follows:

Example: 14 Ibid., paras. 495-498.

Please note: “Ibid.” should not be used when the preceding footnote includes more than one source. 69. References to reports of the Special Rapporteurs published in the Yearbook should be cited as follows:

Example:12Yearbook… 1985, vol. II (Part One), p. 97, document A/CN.4/394.

70. If the report of the Special Rapporteur has not yet been published in the Yearbook, the citation of the report should refer to the document symbol as follows:

Example:14 Document A/CN.4/487 and Add.1.

71. Usually, the summary records of the Commission are published before appearing in the Yearbook. The citation should refer to the document symbol as follows

Example:

Provisional summary record of the 3172nd meeting, A/CN.4/SR.3172, para. 4.

72. In documents, supplements and publications, the symbol of the masthead document being cited is given in parentheses in the text, normally after the full title or description, possibly supplemented by an online source (if no other printed record is available). See paragraphs 84 and 85 for referencing online materials. Where a document is printed in a Yearbook but accessed from the Commission’s website, only the Yearbook citation should be provided.

Examples:Published:The Secretary-General has the honour to transmit to the members of the General Assembly the report of the Joint Inspection Unit entitled “Towards a United Nations humanitarian assistance programme for disaster response and reduction: lessons learned from the Indian Ocean tsunami disaster” (JIU/REP/2006/5).

Unpublished:Preliminary report on the Study on the Function and Scope of the lex specialis rule and the question of self-contained regimes, document ILC(LVI)/SG/FIL/CRD.1 (7 May 2004) and Add.1 (4 May 2004), on file with the Codification Division of the Office of Legal Affairs.

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Please note: In principle, reference should not be made to unpublished material except that which is available on file with the Codification Division of the Office of Legal Affairs.

73. Citations of United Nations documents (and documents from other international institutions) should generally include the following information (with square brackets denoting optional):

Name of the body or institutionDocument symbol or Official reporter (or other place of publication or online source), including the Sales or serial numberParagraph(s)[Full title of the document][Full date of the document]

Example:UNHCR, Note on International Protection, document A/AC.96/830, para.1.

74. The first citation to a treaty should as far as possible include the full title of the treaty, the place and date of its adoption or its signature, and a reference to the official reporter where the convention or treaty was published (if available). The information about the adoption and location of a treaty need only be cited once, the first time the treaty is referred to. In subsequent citations, the short name for the convention or treaty may be used.

Examples:Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (Vienna, 23 May 1969), United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1155, p. 331.

Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (Geneva, 28 July 1951), ibid., vol. 189, No. 2545, p. 150.

75. Where the treaty is not yet published in a treaty series, the conference document number should be used.

Example:United Nations Convention Against Corruption, adopted pursuant to General Assembly resolution 58/4 of 31 October 2003, document A/58/422.

B. Judicial decisions

76. References to cases in footnotes should provide the full name of the case, including the indication of the parties, where applicable. The case name should be italicized. The first citation to judicial decisions should as far as possible include the following information:

Full title of the case, including the names of the partiesType of decision (if relevant)Reporting series containing the judgment, advisory opinion, arbitral

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award, etc. (common abbreviation)Volume or series number, if applicable, and the year of the reporting seriesName of the court, tribunal, body, organ, panel, etc., if applicable (full name or common abbreviation)Case number, if applicableDate of the decisionPlease follow court citations for the International Court of Justice and for the European Court of Human Rights.

Examples:11 Military and Paramilitary Activities in and against Nicaragua (Nicaragua v. United States of America), Merits, Judgment, I.C.J. Reports 1986, p.14 at p. 94, para. 176.

12 Factory at Chorzów (Germany v. Poland), Advisory Opinion, P.C.I.J. Series A 1927, No. 9, p. 32.

13 Finnish Ships Arbitration, UNRIAA vol. III, pp. 1496-1497.

14 Amoco International Finance Corporation v. Iran, Iran-U.S. C.T.R. vol. 15, (1987-II), p. 222.

15 Iran-United States Claims Tribunal, Award No. 53-458-3, Marks & Umman v. Iran, Iran-U.S. C.T.R. Vol. 8 (1985), pp. 296-297.

16 WTO Panel Report, Australia – Measures Affecting the Importation of Salmon (“Australia – Salmon”), WT/DS18/R and Corr. 1, adopted 6 November 1998, as modified by the Appellate Body Report, WT/DS18/AB/R, DSR 1998:VIII, p. 3404.

18 Case C-280/93, Germany v. Council, (1994), ECR I-4973, para. 92.

19 Al-Adsani v. United Kingdom, Application No. 35763/97, ECHR 2001, Vol. XI, p.79.

20 The Prosecutor v. Duško Tadic, Judgement, Case No. IT-94-1-A. A.Ch., 15 July 1999, para.115-145.

For WTO panel decisions, please make sure to mention the date of adoption and not the date of the document.

77. In subsequent footnotes, the short name of the case may be used, and the type of decision, the number of the case, and the date of the decision are omitted. Please avoid referring to decisions of the International Court of Justice by mere reference to the name of the parties.

78. Citations of the International Legal Materials (ILM) International Law Reports (ILR), etc., are secondary sources; they should only be used when the decision has not yet been published by an official reporting series. When a decision has not yet been

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published, reference should be made to an official website where the decision can be found (see below).

C. Doctrine9

79. References to books with one or multiple authors should consist of the following information in the first citation of each of the sources:

Name of author(s) or name(s) of editor(s) and/or translators(s), as printed on the title page of the bookFull title of the book, as printed on the title page (italics)Edition (if applicable)Volume number (if applicable)Place of publication, publisher and year of publication (parentheses)Page(s)

Example: 11 Ian Brownlie, Principles of Public International Law, 6th edition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), at p. 34.

80. For subsequent references use:

Example: 12 Brownlie, footnote 1 above, p. 4.

81 References to contributions in a collection of essays should include the following information in the first citation:

Author(s) of the contribution, as printed in the bookTitle of essay (between double quotation marks)Editor(s) of the collection of essays, as printed in the book, “ed.” or “eds.” (parentheses)Full title of the collection of essays, as printed in the title page (italics)Volume number (if applicable)Edition (if applicable)Place of publication, publisher and year of publication (parentheses)Page(s)

Example:11 R. St. J. Macdonald, “Rummaging in the ruins of Soviet international law and policy in the early years: Is anything left?” in Karel Wellens (ed.), International Law: Theory and Practice Essays in Honour of Eric Suy (Netherlands: Kluwer Law International, 1998), pp. 61-82 at p. 62.

9 See the chapter on outside sources of the United Nations Editorial Manual online (http://dd.dgacm.org/editorialmanual/ed-guidelines/footnotes/footnotes_chap_04.htm).

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82. For subsequent references use:Example:12 St. J. Macdonald (footnote 1 above), p. 81.Or if there are several works cited from the same author:12 St. J. Macdonald, “Rummaging the ruins…” (footnote 11 above), p. 81.

83. References to journal articles or articles in yearbooks should include the following information in the first citation:

Author(s) of contribution, as printed in the journal article, etc.Title of the article (between double quotation marks)Name of journal or yearbook (common abbreviation)Volume numberIssue number (if applicable)Year of publication (parentheses)Page and, if applicable, pinpoint reference(s) to specific reference

Examples:11 Campbell McLachlan, “The Principle of Systemic Integration and Article 31(3)(c) of the Vienna Convention” ICLQ, vol. 54 (2005), p. 279 at p. 281.12 C.W. Jenks, “The Conflict of Law-Making Treaties”, The British Yearbook of International Law, vol. XXX (1953), p. 401.

84. References to online materials should include the following information if possible and

applicable (Please see the United Nations Editorial Manual at

http://dd.dgacm.org/editorialmanual/ed-guidelines/footnotes/footnotes_chap_02.htm#D for more

information.):

Name of the authorTitle of the document (between double quotation marks)Date of publication or other corresponding date of the document (if available)If no printed source of the documents is available, the uniform resource locator (URL) should be preceded by “at”If the website citation is complementary to the citation of the printed source, the URL should be preceded by “available at”If the citation refers to an electronic database, the electronic database should be preceded by “available in” website address/URLDate when you last visited the website, preceded by “last visited” (parentheses)

Example:International Law Association, “Resolution No. 2/2000 International

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Trade Law – Annex 3: Declaration on the Rule of Law in International Trade, 69th Conference of the International Law Association (2000)”, at http://www.ila-hq.org/pdf/Trade%20Law/Restrade.pdf (visited 7 September 2005).

M. Herdegen, “Interpretation in international law”, Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law, para. 34, available at http://www.mpepil.com/Ph. Gautier, Non-Binding Agreements, Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law,, para. 14, available at http://www.mpepil.com/

85. A general reference to a website could also be given as follows:

Example:Decisions of the Court are available at http://www.icj-cij.org.Reports of the International Law Commission are available at http://www.un.org/law/ilc/index.htm.

Annex

Terms commonly italicized in the Yearbook of the International Law Commission.

ad hoc mutatis mutandisad infinituma fortioriaide-memoire noviesa posteriori noviensa priori

octiesbis octiens

op. cit.decies

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deciens per sede facto precisde jure prima faciedemarche proces-verbal

quarteren route quid pro quoet al. quinquiesex gratia quinquiensex officioex post facto raison d 'etre

refoulementfait accompliforce majeure septies

septiensibid. sexiesidem. sexiensin extenso status quoin situ sine qua nonin totointer alia teripso facto

viajus cogens vis-a-vis

laissez-fairelaissez-passerloc. cit.

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