Is International Law International?

Human Rights

Is International Law International?

By Anthea Roberts
Oxford University Press June 2019

Specifications

ISBN-13
9780190066055
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Publication
June 2019
Format
Paperback
Jurisdiction
U.S. ? Countri(es) for reference only

Also available as

Hardback

Details

This book challenges the idea that international law looks the same from anywhere in the world. Instead, how international lawyers understand and approach their field is often deeply influenced by the national contexts in which they lived, studied, and worked.

International law in the United States and in the United Kingdom looks different compared to international law in China and Russia, though some approaches (particularly Western, Anglo-American ones) are more influential outside their borders than others. Given shifts in geopolitical power and the rise of non-Western powers like China, it is increasingly important for international lawyers to understand how others coming from diverse backgrounds approach the field.

By examining the international law academies and textbooks of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, Roberts provides a window into these different communities of international lawyers, and she uncovers some of the similarities and differences in how they understand and approach international law.

Table of Contents

List of Figures
List of Tables
Abbreviations
Foreword by Martti Koskenniemi
Preface
Acknowledgments

Chapter 1
The Divisible College of International Lawyers
I. Difference
II. Dominance
III. Disruption

Chapter 2
Project Design
I. General Framework
A. Comparative International Law
B. International Law as a Transnational Legal Field
II. The Actors and Materials Studied
A. International Law Academics
B. International Law Textbooks
III. The States and Universities Studied
A. The Permanent Members of the Security Council
B. Focus on Academics at Elite Universities
IV. Important Concepts and Factors
A. Nationalizing, Denationalizing, and Westernizing Influences
B. Core, Periphery, and Semiperipheral States
C. The Relevance of Language
V. Three Points of Method
A. Factors That Reflect and Reinforce Particular Approaches
B. Identifying and Seeking to Overcome One's Own Limitations
C. Studying the Present Rather Than Changes over Time

Chapter 3
Comparing International Law Academics
I. The Global Flow of Students and Ideas
A. Cross-Border Flows of Tertiary Students in General
B. The Globalization of Legal Education
C. Implications for the Divisible College
II. Comparing Educational Profiles
A. Tracking Educational Diversity
B. Explaining Educational Diversity
C. Implications for the Divisible College
III. Comparing Publication Placements
A. Tracking Publication Placements
B. Explaining Publication Placements
C. Implications for the Divisible College
IV. Comparing Links Between Academia and Practice
A. Tracking Links between Academia and Practice
B. Explaining Different Connections between Academia and Practice
C. Implications for the Divisible College

Chapter 4
Comparing International Law Textbooks and Casebooks
I. Preliminary Points of Method
A. Identifying Textbooks, Casebooks, and Manuals
B. The Need for Multiple Metrics and Case Studies
C. Changes Over Time in Chinese and Russian Textbooks
II. The Nationalized/Denationalized Divide
A. Identifying Highly Nationalized Textbooks
B. Identifying Highly Denationalized Textbooks
III. Inconsistent Approaches
A. A Two-Speed Approach in Chinese Textbooks
B. Future Directions for Chinese Textbooks
IV. A Tendency to Look West
A. Looking West in Citations to National Court Decisions
B. Looking West in Citations to Academic Authorities
V. A Lack of Diverse Comparativism
A. Textbooks that Lack a Comparative Approach
B. Textbooks that are Comparative but Not Necessarily Diverse
VI. Divisions Between the Western and Non-Western Books
A. Differences in Emphasis: the Law of Outer Space
B. Differences in Ideology: Unilateral Humanitarian Intervention
VII. Divisions Between Western Books
A. Differences in High Politics: 2003 Iraq War
B. Differences in Low Politics: Approaches to Jurisdiction

Chapter 5
Patterns of Difference and Dominance
I. Comparing International Legal Academies
A. Identifying Outlier Academies and Institutions
B. Identifying Different Comparative Advantages
II. Identifying Scholarly Silos and Attempts to Connect
A. Debates about Crimea's Annexation by, or Reunification with, Russia
B. Debates about the South China Sea Arbitration 453
III. Identifying Patterns of Dominance
A. Representation of Regions and Nationalities
B. English as International Law's Lingua Franca
C. The Effect of Choice of Language on the Field
D. The Example of the Jessup Moot Competition

Chapter 6
Disruptions Leading to a Competitive World Order
I. Shifting to a Competitive World Order
A. The Significance of Changing Geopolitical Power
B. China and Russia's Joint Declaration on International Law
II. Disagreements in Practice, Not Just Words
A. Constraining Western Agendas: Unilateral Humanitarian Intervention
B. Pursuing Non-Western Agendas: Cyber and Information Security
C. Challenging Interpretations: Freedom of the Seas
Conclusion

Appendix A
Academics included in the Study
Appendix B
Scholars Referred to in Select Chinese and Russian International Law Textbooks
Appendix C
Tables of Content for International Law Textbooks
Appendix D
Chinese Research Funding by Topic
Bibliography*
Books and Reports
Book Chapters
Journal Articles and Book Reviews
Newspapers, Magazines, and Blogs
Cases
Internet Sources
Speeches and Audio
Statutes, Government Statements and Decrees
Other
Index
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