Locating International Decisions
Margaret Clark
Reference Librarian
FSU College of Law Research Center
October 2007
Sources of International Law
Article 38, Statute Establishing the ICJ
Primary Sources
 International conventions
 International custom
 General principles
Secondary Sources
 Judicial decisions
 Teachings of publicists
Judicial Decisions
Defined by Article 59, ICJ Statute as:
Decisions of international tribunals
 Decisions of national courts addressing
international law


Keep in mind:
Binding only on the parties
 Not precedential

Decisions of International Courts

Tools for identifying and finding cases:
Secondary Sources
 Digests
 Reporters & Internet sites of specific courts
 Multinational sources
 Subject-specific compilations

International Courts: Digests
World Court Digest
 HUDOC – European Court on Human
Rights Portal
 International Law Reports (ILR)

International Courts: Digests

International Law Reports
Available only in print
 Best source for full text opinions in English
 Best source for finding recent decisions

ICJ
 International courts and tribunals
 Administrative Tribunal ILO
 National Courts

From 1919 to present
 KZ 199.I58 (1st floor of Library)

International Courts: Internet sites
International Court of Justice
 European Court of Justice
 Inter-American Court of Human Rights
 Special Court for Sierra Leone
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Many more listed in handout!
International Courts:
Compiled Sources

International Legal Materials
Available in print and electronic
 Hein Online (use for browsing)
 Lexis, Westlaw (use for searching)
 Internet – Table of Contents

International Legal Materials (ILM)
In print / Westlaw / Lexis / Internet / HeinOnline
International Courts:
Compiled Sources

Journals summarizing decisions
American Journal of International Law
 European Journal of International Law
 Human Rights Law Journal

International Courts:
Subject-specific compilations
Human Rights Cases (Westlaw, Lexis)
 International Trade Law Reports
 International Environmental Law Reports
 Global War Crimes Tribunal Collection

Decisions of national courts

International Law in Domestic Courts
(ILDC) Database
Available from Law Library List of Databases
 contains English translations from over 65
jurisdictions
 Also contains scholarly commentary on
important points of international law.
 Cases date back to 2000
 can be searched by country, keyword or full text
search.

Decisions of national courts
GlobalCourts www.globalcourts.com
Supreme Court decisions from 129 countries
 Coverage varies among all courts
 Keyword and phrase searching

Decisions of national courts

Foreign Law Guide
Not free
 Guide to foreign law sources
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
Library of Congress Nations of the World
Free, Internet
 Browse by country
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International Legal Materials
Decisions of National Courts

National yearbooks summarize cases
African Yearbook on International Law
 British Yearbook on International Law
 Chinese Yearbook on International Law and
Affairs
 Yearbook on United Nations Law

Search online catalog under subject headings:
1. “international law” + yearbooks
2. “international law” + yearbooks + [country]
Decisions of national courts

International decisions in U.S. courts
American Law Reports, Federal
 West digest

International Law
 Treaties
385

221
Research Guides
ASIL Research Guides - General
 Guide to Researching the ICJ – Specific
 Cornell Legal Research Engine

Cornell Legal Search Engine
Project on International Courts and Tribunals
Questions?