Ways to Distinguish between international law and national law

Author: John Stephens
Date Of Creation: 21 January 2021
Update Date: 1 July 2024
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National law vs international law - An animated explainer
Video: National law vs international law - An animated explainer

Content

International law, a term coined by the philosopher Jeremy Bentham around 1800, refers to the system of judgments, principles and practices that govern discourse between nations (e.g. human rights, military intervention, and global concerns such as climate change). In contrast, national law governs the actions of individuals and legal entities within the borders of the sovereign state (for example civil law and criminal law).

Steps

Part 1 of 4: Examination of the basics of international law

  1. Understand the concept of international law. When questions and conflicts arise in relations between sovereign states, they will be resolved according to the principles of international law. This legal system includes treaties and rulings to interpret those treaties.
    • International law recognizes that all parties, sovereign states, are equal.
    • Conflicts arising under international law can be resolved through diplomatic negotiation or at the International Court of Justice. This is a court of the United Nations. Fifteen judges elected by the United Nations General Assembly use international legal precedent to reach their positions and resolve legal disputes between governments.
    • The International Court of Justice has jurisdiction in two cases: first, when two states agree to bring the conflict to court, and second, when the treaty designates the court as the with dispute.

  2. Distinguish international justice from international law. When citizens of different states have legal disputes, it is often questioned which law will apply. The question of choosing the law of application in civil affairs, from contract law to family law, was discussed at the Hague Conference on international justice.
    • In general, the court will first look at the terms of the contract to determine which court will have jurisdiction. When the contract does not specify the language of the hearing, the court will consider the overall context of the contract, the behavior of the parties in the contract (called evidence of commitment) and whether the parties can agree. pros to the jurisdiction or not.

  3. Consider literature on international law. Customary international law is compiled in the Vienna Convention on the Law of International Agreements. Under this customary law, states have agreed to follow certain practices of liability. advertisement

Part 2 of 4: Examination of the rules of national law


  1. Municipal law. In the common usage, particularly in the US, the word municipal refers to a city or town. However, in the context of international law, the word municipal refers to any sovereign entity, including nation, state, county, province, city and town. In short, the word municipal law refers to the internal law of a government.
  2. Learn the basics of national law. National law (or domestic law) takes two main forms. The first is civil law which is composed of written law and the regulations for the implementation of written law. The act is passed by the state legislature or by popular vote. National law is also constituted by common law - law created by the lower and higher courts of the country.
    • Common forms of national law are criminal law, traffic law, and government regulation. Basically, national law governs citizens' relations with the government.
  3. Understand the enforcement mechanism of national law. Civil law and common law are implemented in very different ways. For example, law enforcement agencies, from the local police to the federal investigative agency, have the authority to enforce criminal and civil acts. By contrast, common law - often called judge-created law - is primarily addressed when adjudicating legal matters such as contract law or domestic business disputes. advertisement

Part 3 of 4: Distinguishing international law from national law

  1. Consider how to make the law. There is no international law. The United Nations agreed on conventions that member states decide to ratify and comply with, but there is no international governmental entity. International law is made up of treaties, practices and agreements between countries. This is in stark contrast to the legislative process that creates the national laws of states and states.
    • An international treaty is a binding legal agreement between countries. In a country like the United States, a treaty is an agreement approved by Congress. After being ratified, a treaty is as valid as federal law (ie, law). So treaties can have different meanings depending on which country or international agency is discussing them. Take the Treaty of Versailles, for example, which was a treaty signed after World War I.
    • International agreements are often less formal than treaties, although the international community also ranks them on par with treaties. In the US, international agreements do not need to be ratified by Congress, and they are only applied in national law (that is, they cannot be enforced by themselves). An example of an international agreement is the Kyoto Agreement, which provides for the reduction of emissions globally, with the aim of curbing climate change.
    • International practice is created when a country regularly and steadfastly follows a certain practice due to a sense of legal obligations. International practice is not necessarily documented and is the least formal form of international law documents.
  2. Study how to enforce the law. No police agency has complete international authority. Even INTERPOL, an organization with 190 member countries, only acts as the coordinating body, providing information and training for the national police force. When there are disputes between states, international law is enforced through treaties, United Nations conventions and the International Court of Justice.
    • In legal disputes under national law, the case will be ruled on the basis of civil law in the form of statute, or the common law system of the state in which the action occurred.
  3. Understand the stakeholders and impact on them. If the two parties to the legal dispute are sovereign states, you can assume that international law, international judgment enforcement and dispute resolution methods will apply. Conversely, if both parties are citizens of the same country, the national law enforcement agency, the judicial system and the internal adjudication principles will be applied to resolve the dispute.
    • When disputes arise between individuals of different countries or between individuals and governments of another country, courts will base their treaties, UN conventions or contracts to obtain information about the country. jurisdiction before accepting a dispute.
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Part 4 of 4: Evaluation of the relationship between international law and national law

  1. Relationship analysis from the point of view of "allergens" theory. Many in the international community see international law and national law as two separate entities. Each system, they think, adapts its own problems and exists in its own world. Their view is that international law governs the behavior of states and the interactions of states with each other. On the other hand, they argue that national law governs the behavior of those living in a sovereign state.
    • If you are an allergist then you would say that these two systems are hardly interacting with each other. However, if they consider it interoperable, it is when national law recognizes and integrates the principles of international law. Therefore, national law will prevail over international law. In the event of a conflict between international law and national law, the national court shall apply the national law.
  2. Relationship analysis from the point of view of "monism" theory. Monisticists believe that both international law and national law are part of the legal system. For them, both systems are based on the same basis to regulate the behavior of people and things.
    • If you are a monolith, international law will prevail over national law, even in national courts.
  3. To what extent are countries subject to international law? Although countries have a common obligation to comply with international law, there is often a large deviation in their compliance. In general, states are free to decide how to integrate international law into national law. They dealt with this problem in many different ways, but the general trend was heterogeneity. Consequently, most countries formally integrate international law by passing some national laws.
  4. Assessing the impact of international law on national law. In the international context, international law will prevail over national law. However, national law is useful proof of customary international law and the general principles of law.In addition, international law often leaves behind questions that can only be answered by a country's own law. So if you have to go to international court, you can use national law to determine if there is a violation of international law. Even international courts can refer to national law to help them interpret international law.
    • In the internal (i.e. national) context, the interactions between two legal systems are more difficult to assess. In general, less formal international agreements and practices will be recognized and followed as long as they do not conflict with national law. If there is a conflict, the national law usually takes precedence. Formal treaties, however, are often seen as equally valid for national law, as long as they are self-enforcing (that is, self-enforcing within a country). But some countries have different views.
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