International law Rostam

International law Rostam indices imp portions pages

Articles Vienna Convention etc. United Nations Convention on the Law of the Treaties, signed at Viema in 1969-' In 85 articles, the Convention considers the fundamental role of treaties in international relations and provides usefl guidance in theinterpretation (Art. 31-33) and mutual relation of intemational treaties, e.g. as to their

territorial (Art. 29) and temporal (Art. 28, 30) scope of application. The Convention,

however, oniy applies to international treaties concluded between States and not to other

subjects of international Iaw (Art. 3) and thus its value for the present international legal

order is clearly limited. Fwtber, it is noteworthy that the United States of America is not

among the 83 States that became parties to the Convention through ratification, accession or

successioIntrasystemic confiicts can even be traced to one legal category, such as specialisation within

the reaim of civil law and, as a result, its proceeding hgmentation in torts law. Therefore,

hm a dualist perspective, the two levels of law are equal and reflect the current situation of

the legal order as a single system of law. Moreover, in a dynamic global society conflicts are

also likely to arise between state law and social quasi-legaI ordersEconomics

2.1. The Commercial Seaor as a Pioneer of "GIob&ationnglobal dynamism, with the juridification

"globalisation what is it? Economic integration at a certain point reqd political integration, which is introduced through laws. Keeping in mind this genuine link, the following paragraphs will - from a legal perspective - deal with the purely commercial activities as reflected in the notions of "transnational law", transnational commercial law",

"internationa1 law of contracts", "law of international trade", "Droit du commerce internationaf', or "new law merchant (lex mercatoria)".fJ3 Over the years the notion of [lexmercatoria has gained wide acceptance. This great variety of notions is minored in the same

nurnber of definitions and is the cause for hot debate for more than three decades no^.'^question of the existence of an independent law of a

proper Iaw merchant, or [ex mercatoria; in the periphery its scope, its legal character and

theoretical foundation are disputed."'' The lex mercatoria itself forms a farnily, comprising

in itself many subcategories such as the lex petrolea, the [ex electronicu, the [ex

constructionis, the [ex maritinla, and the international law of con tract^?^ For this essay,

emphasis will be put on the unity of the legal systern, and therefore the lex mercatoria is

perceived as a revived conceptual mode1 of a new ius commune, a law cornmon to manyIt is hm this vacuum that the concept of a new lex mercatoria was boni. Given the vacuum

between two traditionally distinct areas of law, it might be legitimate for the moment to deny

the strict legal character of la mercatoria, or at least to perceive it as an independent ''third

legal order". A closer look at the constituting elements of the [ex mercatona, however, might

shed some light on its factual character. As constituting elements, the following sources

serve: (1) public international taw; (2) uniform laws; (3) the general principles of law, (4) the

rules of international organisations; (5) customs and usages; (6) standard form contracts; (7)

reporting of arbitrai awards; (8) judicial decisions and jurisprudentid contriiutions; and (9)

pnvate international law.249 From this listing of constituting elements, hardly any doubts

concerning the legal character of the lex mercatoria are Iikely to appear. The ler mercatoria

even fidfils the classical standards of a legal order: it is normative, institutionalised, and

coercive." A mere comparison with the standards of national legal systems however would

begin with the wrong premise, because of the transcending supranational function of the lex 83mercat~ria.~N' onetheless, it sufaces here for the time being to indicate that des

originatng hm the concept of a 'lex mercatoria' exist and that they are appliedLnlex mercatoriain international practice is found in the work of international judicial organs

and especially in the work of international mixed arbitral tniunals resolving disputes arising

hm contractual relationship 84ACT OF STATE DOCTRINE Q&A: International Criminal Court

Continue reading the main storyRelated Stories

Congo warlord denies war crimes AU rejects Bashir Darfur charges ICC probes Darfur rebel leadersThe International Criminal Court in The Hague has been a controversial addition to the global justice system since it began operating in 2002. The court has been ratified by 121 countries - but not by the US.

The BBC News website examines the main issues surrounding the court.

What is the court designed to do?

To prosecute and bring to justice those responsible for the worst crimes - genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes - committed anywhere in the world.

It is a court of last resort, intervening only when national authorities cannot or will not prosecute.

Aren't there already several international courts?

Yes, but they either do different jobs or have a limited remit.

The International Court of Justice (sometimes called the World Court) rules on disputes between governments. It cannot prosecute individuals.

The international criminal tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda do try individuals for crimes against humanity, but only those crimes committed in those territories over a limited time.

Those tribunals will eventually be wound up. The International Criminal Court however, is a permanent body.

Are there any time limits on what it covers?

The court has no retrospective jurisdiction - it can deal only with crimes committed after 1 July 2002 when the 1998 Rome Statute came into force.

Additionally, the court has automatic jurisdiction only for crimes committed on the territory of a state which has ratified the treaty; or by a citizen of such a state; or when the United Nations Security Council refers a case to it.

What kind of cases is the court pursuing?

All of the cases currently open are in Africa - prompting some African leaders to say it is biased.

The court's first verdict, in March 2012, was against Thomas Lubanga, the leader of a militia in Democratic Republic of Congo. He was convicted of war crimes relating to the use of children in that country's conflict and sentenced in July to 14 years.

The highest profile person to be brought to the ICC is Ivory Coast's former President Laurent Gbagbo.

He facesfour chargesof crimes against humanity - murder, rape and other forms of sexual violence, persecution and "other inhuman acts".

The charges relate to the violence that followed disputed elections in 2010.

In November 2010, a trial started of Jean-Pierre Bemba, a former DR Congo vice-president.

Mr Bemba - a fo