Terminating Treaties

Abstract

This chapter is a contribution to The Oxford Guide to Treaties (Duncan Hollis, ed., Oxford University Press, 2012). Part I of the chapter provides an overview of the international law rules governing exit from multilateral and bilateral treaties, including key provisions of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. Part II highlights the wide variations in the design and invocation of treaty termination, denunciation, and withdrawal clauses using illustrations from a range of subject areas. Part III sets forth a theory of treaty exit. It argues that termination, denunciation, and withdrawal clauses are tools for managing risk - a pervasive feature of international affairs. A concluding section briefly identifies avenues for future research on treaty exit that may aid scholars and practitioners alike.