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International Legal Research

  • Introduction
  • Getting Started
  • Staying Current
  • Abbreviations
  • Resources
  • Contact Us

International law is the law between nations, such as treaties. Foreign law involves the law of jurisdictions outside of the United States, such as British law. Comparative law studies the differences and similarities of the laws and legal traditions of different countries.

The Statute of the International Court of Justice sets out the four sources of international law in Art. 38.

  • international conventions, whether general or particular, establishing rules expressly recognized by the contesting states;
  • international custom, as evidence of a general practice accepted as law;
  • the general principles of law recognized by civilized nations;
  • judicial decisions and the teachings of the most highly qualified publicists of the various nations, as subsidiary means for the determination of rules of law

The library has guides for starting your research in the basic sources of law:

It also has some subject specific guides:

There are also several Portals which provide quick links for experienced researchers.

If you are interested in keeping up with International Law developments see the Current Awareness page.

Finally, don't forget to check out Other International & Foreign Law Web Pages for a selection of excellent sites that can help jumpstart your international legal research project.

In the course of your international law research, if you have any questions or would like to discuss researching a particular topic, please contact Karina Condra:

 

Secondary sources, i.e., books and articles, can often be the best way to gain an overview for the topic of public international law you are researching. These resources are generally the first step in identifying primary source material. Noteworthy secondary sources to international law are:

For other sources of expert opinion of areas of international law that are customary see the Bibliography.

 

Blogs: General

Blogs: Subject-Specific

Newletters

Websites

Other

Video

 

Use the following sources to decipher international and foreign citations:

  • Bieber’s Dictionary of Legal Citations
    • Law Ref Desk, Law Annex, Law Reserve and Dictionary K 89 B53 2001
  • Guide to Foreign and International Legal Citations
    • Law Ref Desk K 89 G85 2009
  • Index to Legal Citations and Abbreviations
    • Law Ref Desk K85 R35 1993
  • Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations
  • The Bluebook, 19th Ed.
    • Rule 20: Foreign Materials
    • Rule 21: International Materials
    • T.2: Foreign Jurisdictions
    • T.3: Intergovernmental Organizations
    • T.4: Treaty Sources
    • T.5: Arbitral Reporters

 

Web pages for International & Foreign Law Research

Metasites: International

Metasites: Foreign

Guides

 

Ask a Reference Librarian

In the course of your human rights research, if you have any questions or would like to discuss researching a particular topic, please contact David Bachman:

In Person: See a professional reference librarian during reference hours at the desk located inside the Pappas reading room.

By Phone: The Reference Librarians may be reached by phone at 617-353-3151 during reference hours.

Via Chat: The LiveChat service is available during reference hours.

The following services are limited to BU School of Law Students:

By Email: students may submit an email reference request.

By Appointment: students may make an appointment for an individual research consultation.

 

Page maintained by David Bachman
Last updated: August 2012