International Law as Law
CAMBRIDGE COMPANION TO INTERNATIONAL LAW, James Crawford and Martti Koskenniemi, eds., 2010
26 Pages Posted: 6 Sep 2010 Last revised: 8 Nov 2010
Date Written: September 6, 2010
Abstract
This draft chapter is an attempt to discuss debates on the character of international law as a legal system. The chapter seeks to identify certain ideal-typical characteristics of international law and sees how those affect the debate on whether international law is "really law." It suggests that international law's distinctivness is that it is a legal system that resists both reform through centralization, absorption by empires, or dissolution through privatization. Note: this is a non-edited version, only the published version is complete and quotable.
Keywords: international law
JEL Classification: K33
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation