Constitutional & Public Law
Nature and sources of international law, State recognition/jurisdiction/responsibility/succession, treaties, individuals, extradition, ICJ and settlement of disputes.
One-shot revision
The whole subject in one place: read end to end before exams.
Public International Law is studied in seven units: from how a law between nations was born to how a new State or government is accepted by other States. Rules made between States work quietly in daily life, when a parcel is sent abroad, a flight goes to Singapore, or fish is caught in the Indian…
123 min read
Oppenheim defines international law as the set of customary and conventional rules that are legally binding for "civilized" states in their relations with each other. This definition mainly considers states as the prima…
91 min read
Topic by topic
Short, focused notes on each topic, newest first.
Landmark cases of public international law, arranged around the sources of international law and the law of treaties: international custom (general, regional and local), general principles of law, acquiescence and estoppel, good faith performance of treaties ( pacta sunt servanda), reservations…
103 min read
State jurisdiction asks a basic question of Public International Law: when may a state make, enforce and apply its law to a person, a thing or an event? The topic covers the three kinds of jurisdiction, the five recognised bases (the "keys") on which a state may claim jurisdiction, the two limits (…
16 min read
The law of diplomatic envoys explains who a diplomat is, what a diplomatic mission does, what privileges and immunities a diplomat enjoys in the receiving State, and what limits keep a diplomat answerable. The subject is best approached through a practical problem.
20 min read
The Law of the Sea governs every patch of ocean by asking the same set of questions. Once these questions are understood, almost any problem in the subject can be solved.
36 min read
The law of neutrality explains how a state that stays out of a war between other states is protected, and what that state must do in return. One historical episode contains almost the whole subject.
23 min read
A small number of leading cases supply many of the rules of Public International Law. Each of them began as a real dispute, and each produced a rule that is needed for examinations and for understanding how States deal with one another. The topic covers 21 leading cases.
54 min read
International Humanitarian Law (IHL) is the body of international law that governs how armed conflict is fought. It answers practical questions that arise on the battlefield. The three problems below are solved at the end of these notes with the exact rule that applies.
24 min read
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is the international organisation that governs trade between states. This topic covers the functions of the WTO, its history from the 1930s tariff wars through Bretton Woods and GATT to the Marrakesh Agreement, its agreements (the annexes), the two core rules of n…
13 min read
Settlement of international disputes covers the meaning of an international dispute, the duty that the Charter of the United Nations places on States to settle disputes peacefully, the pacific means of settlement, the compulsive means recognised by customary law, the collective measures of the Secu…
20 min read
The United Nations does its work through six principal organs . This topic covers each organ in turn: its composition, its powers and functions, and its voting rules under the Charter of the United Nations, together with the practice that has grown around them.
30 min read
The United Nations (UN) is best understood as the successor to the League of Nations. The League was built on the idea of collective security. Its failures shaped the Charter of the United Nations, which tried to cure each of the League's weaknesses.
11 min read
Asylum and extradition are two mirror-image ideas of public international law.
17 min read
Quick revision
One point per page, each with its YouTube Short: the quick answer, the law, an example and the exam point.
Judgments explained
Facts, issues, judgment and the principle to remember.
1927
After a French ship collided with a Turkish ship on the high seas, the P.C.I.J. held in 1927 that Turkey could try the French officer, because international law did not forbid it. The case gave the 'Lotus principle': a State is free to act unless a rule of international law prohibits it. Its specific rule on collisions at sea was later reversed by treaty, now Article 97 of UNCLOS, 1982.
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71 chapters Free video course
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Treaty Reservations Explained | Can a Country Reject One Clause?
Short
Can Torture Ever Be Legal? | Jus Cogens & Article 53 Explained
Short
Can Indians Complain to the UN Human Rights Committee? | ICCPR
Short
UN Human Rights Council vs Committee | Don't Confuse These Bodies
Short
Universal Periodic Review Explained | Who Reviews Every UN Country?
Short
Vishaka Case Explained | Can International Treaties Guide Indian Courts?
Short
Is International Law Really Law? Austin vs Nicaragua Case (ICJ 1986)
Short
Local Custom in International Law | Right of Passage Case, Portugal v India (1960)
Short
Jus Cogens Explained | Articles 53 & 64 VCLT 1969 | Belgium v Senegal
Short
Recognition of Governments | Luther v Sagor (1921) | De Facto Recognition
Short
Refugee vs IDP | 1951 Refugee Convention Art 1A(2) & Non-Refoulement Explained
Short
India as a Founding Member of the UN | UN Charter Articles 3, 4 & 110
Short
Practise
Every answer comes with an explanation and the legal provision behind it.
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