Description: This intellectually rigorous introduction to international law encourages readers to engage with multiple aspects of the topic: as 'law' directing and shaping its subjects; as a technique for governing the world of states and beyond statehood; and as a framework within which several critical and constructivist projects are articulated. The articles situate international law in its historical and ideological context and examine core concepts such as sovereignty, jurisdiction and the state. Attention is also given to its operation within international institutions and in dispute settlement, and a separate section is devoted to international law's 'projects': protecting human rights, eradicating poverty, the conservation of resources, the regulation of international trade and investment and the establishment of international order. The diverse group of contributors draws from disciplinary orientations ranging from positivism to postmodernism to ensure that this book is informed theoretically and politically, as well as grounded in practice.
Brief description: James Crawford is Whewell Professor of International Law and a Fellow of Jesus College, Cambridge. He was a member of the United Nations International Law Commission from 1992 to 2001 and Special Rapporteur on State Responsibility from 1997 to 2001. He has also been a member of the Australian Law Reform Commission. In addition to scholarly work on statehood, self-determination, collective rights and international responsibility, he has appeared frequently before the International Court of Justice and other international tribunals and is actively engaged as expert, counsel and arbitrator.
Review Quotes: "From the title alone one might anticipate a weighty and perhaps a somewhat dry collection. The opposite is the case. The eighteen-chapter book is by no means lightweight in its intellectual content but especially in paperback form, is extremely reader-friendly ... an excellent resource for students perhaps alongside one of the better cases and materials options. Our students want to know how international law fits in with, and either challenges or contributes to, the world's problems. For them as well as for practitioners, researchers and the interested wider public, this is an excellent collection and a timely reminder that international law is on the map just as so many Australian scholars are contributing to the discipline."
John R Morss, Deakin University Law School, Newsletter of International Law Association