International law is one of the basic building blocks of the United Nations system.

It
provides the foundation for stable, peaceful and just relationships between States and
their people. This week, we’ll explore what international law is.

What is International Law and What isn’t

The United Nations defines international law as “the legal responsibilities of States in
their conduct with each other, and their treatment of individuals within State
boundaries.” International law is established in four primary ways: treaties, judicial
decisions, some Security Council actions and custom.
The most familiar of these ways is treaties. Most international law is established by
States agreeing that a certain principle, norm or procedure is indeed international law.
Treaties are formal, legally-binding documents that establish these agreements by
States. They are drafted and signed by States, which have a legal obligation to obey
the terms of a treaty they have signed. While the majority of treaties in the world are
bilateral (between two States), the most commonly referenced treaties in Model UN
are multilateral treaties that include many States.
International courts can also establish international law. Courts are given the power
to create binding decisions by treaties signed by States. All opinions by the
International Court of Justice (ICJ) in contentious cases brought by two States before
the court are legally-binding and constitute international law but do not create
precedents for future cases. Advisory opinions, on the other hand, are not binding.
The ICJ derives its authority from a particularly important treaty: the United Nations
Charter. Other treaties have established other courts that make legally-binding
decisions as well, such as the International Criminal Court, and the International
Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.
Some Security Council actions establish legally-binding obligations under
international law. Any action taken by the Security Council under Article VII related to
securing international peace (such as through peacekeeping or sanctions) is legally-
binding on all Member States. Additionally, the Security Council can establish ad hoc
tribunals that can make legal decisions. Two former examples are the International
Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and the International Criminal Tribunal for
Yugoslavia (ICTY).
Finally, customary international law can be binding upon States. The Statute of the
International Court of Justice defines customary international law as “evidence of a
general practice accepted as law.” Customary international law is defined by the
general practice of States and by acceptance as law by States. In practice, customary
international law is complicated. States can (and do) regularly redefine customary
international law simply by changing their practices.
There are many other UN documents that appear to be legally binding but are not.
Declarations, Agreements, and Ministerial Statements are not legally binding
documents. They do not carry the weight of international law.
Treaty Terminology
Treaty is one of the most common terms for a multilateral agreement, though many
are called conventions or covenants. Treaties, conventions and covenants are
synonymous, with no distinction in meaning. Protocols are also legally-binding
agreements, though they are typically an addendum to another treaty. For example,
the Kyoto Protocol is an addendum to the UN Framework Convention on Climate
Change, while Protocol I is an addition to the four Geneva Conventions.
States are bound only by treaties they have agreed to. States bound by a treaty are
referred to as the States Parties (pronounced States Party)—the parties to the
agreement. States become States Parties in two primary ways: by ratifying a treaty
and acceding to a treaty.
Ratification occurs when a State formally agrees to be bound by a treaty. Accession
typically occurs when a new State takes on the legal obligations of a former State, such
as when Russia acceded to the treaty obligations of the USSR. Ratification is more
typical. Signatures are different from ratification or accession. Signatures occur soon
after a new treaty is created and they signal a State’s intent to ratify a treaty. A
signature alone is not legally binding.