Guide last updated by Katherine Read, March 2023
This guide was created by Katherine Read, Principal Library Assistant at the IALS Library.
Email katherine.read@sas.ac.uk
We'd love to hear your comments about this Research Guide.
Email ials@sas.ac.uk
This guide aims to give a brief introduction to the Library's holdings on Public International Law. Please consult Library Search for complete information on current titles and locations. If you require further assistance please contact us.
Monday-Friday 9:30-17:00
Tel (0)20 7862 5790
Email ials@sas.ac.uk
This Subject Guide only lists a selection of Library resources on Public International Law. To find additional resources you will need to search Library Search, which covers the complete holdings of the Library. It is possible to search for books, journals and series of law reports by author, title or keyword.
IALS Library is mainly open access and readers are able to browse the shelves in the main collection. There are two main exceptions to this:
Please request these at the Library Enquiry Desk.
For more information on understanding the catalogue record and further guidance on the location of materials please refer to our guide Classmarks and the Location of Resources in the Library.
The Library classifies textbooks either by jurisdiction (GO13, GA2 etc.) or according to subject area, examples of which include Comparative Law (SB), Public International Law (SG) and Private International Law/ Conflict of Laws (SH).
All classmark sections have a FOL section for oversize volumes, which is located on the same floor of the Library.
When you are searching on Library Search for books, please note that only the current edition is held on the open shelves or in the Short Loan collection. IALS has a rich collection of previous editions held in the closed basement and these will display a Depository number on the catalogue. Please request previous editions from the Library Enquiry Desk.
Public International Law material is shelved at SG (SG5 for general works)
The following list represents a selection of textbooks on public international law. Please follow the links to Library Search for further information and location. Titles are available in both print and electronic formats, unless indicated otherwise on the list below.
Abualrob, W. Protection of the environment under international law during occupation; International humanitarian, human rights and environmental law Routledge 2025 (print only)
Amerasinghe, C. Principles of the institutional law of international organizations 2nd ed. 2005 CUP
Bossche, P. van den Law and policy of the World Trade Organization: text cases and materials. 5th ed. 2022 CUP
Brownlie, I.Brownlie's principles of public international law 9th ed. 2019 OUP
Cassese, A. Cassese's international law 3rd ed. 2020
Cassese, A. International criminal law 3rd ed. 2013 (print only)
Chuah, J. Law of international trade: cross-border commercial transactions 7th ed. 2023 (print only)
Conforti, B. Law and practice of the United Nations. 5th ed. 2016 (online only)
Crawford, P. Creation of states in international law 2nd ed. 2006
Dinstein, Y. The conduct of hostilities under the law of international armed conflict.4th ed. 2022 CUP
Dinstein, Y. War, aggression and self-defence 6th ed. 2017 (print only)
Evans, M. (ed.) Blackstone’s international law documents 15th ed. 2021 (print only)
Evans, M. International law 6th ed. 2024 (print only)
Gray, C. International law and the use of force 4th ed. 2018 OUP
Harris, D.J. Cases and materials on international law 9th ed. 2020 (print only)
Higgins, R and others Oppenheim's international law. United Nations 2017 OUP (online only)
Hill, J. Aust's modern treaty law and practice 4th ed. 2023 CUP (print only)
Khan, D. Democracy and sovereignty: rethinking the legitimacy of public international law Brill Nijhoff 2023 (online only)
Klabbers, J. International law 4th ed. 2024 CUP (print only)
Orakhelashvili, A ed. Akehurst's modern introduction to international law 9th ed. 2022
Qureshi, A. & Ziegler, A. International economic law 4th ed. 2019 (print only)
Schabas, W. An introduction to the international criminal court 6th ed. 2020 CUP (online only)
Schermers, H. International institutional law: unity within diversity 6th ed. 2018 Brill Nijhoff (online only)
Shaw, M. International law 9th ed. 2021 (print only)
Simma, B. Charter of the United Nations: a commentary 4th ed. 2024 OUP
IALS Library holds a wide selection of current serial titles on public international law from many different jurisdictions. These are located on all floors of the Library. Titles are available in both print and electronic formats, unless indicated otherwise on the list below. For more detailed help, please refer to the guide on Finding journal articles. The following titles focus particularly on Public international law but there may be relevant articles in less specialised journals.
African yearbook of international law
American journal of international law
American university international law review
Annuaire français de droit international (print only)
Australian year book of international law
Austrian review of international and European law
Boston University international law journal
British yearbook of international law
Canadian yearbook of international law
Chinese journal of international law
Cornell international law journal
Denver journal of international law and policy
European journal of international law
Fordham international law journal
German yearbook of international law
Harvard international law journal
Hastings international and comparative law review
Journal du droit international
Leiden journal of international law
Michigan journal of international law
Netherlands international law review
Netherlands yearbook of international law
Nordic journal of international law
Polish yearbook of international law
Proceedings (American Society of International Law)
Recueil des cours (Académie de droit international)
Revista española de derecho internacional
Revue belge de droit international
Revue générale de droit international public (print only)
Rivista di diritto internazionale (print only)
Schweizerische Zeitschrift für internationales und europäisches Recht
Stanford journal of international law
Virginia journal of international law
Yale journal of international law
If you are interested in legislation or cases concerning public international law issues in specific countries you will need to consult the serials in SG.
Consult Library Search to find the general classmark for the subject area you require. Consult consolidations of legislation, digests or indexes to trace particular acts or cases.
Academic users may also use databases like Lexis/Westlaw to find UK, US, EU or international decisions. For further information please refer to Law Databases or ask at the Library Enquiry Desk.
Please refer to the serials section of this guide to find specific law report series.
You may also find it useful to refer to our guides on finding Legislation and Cases or check to see if we have a Jurisdiction Research Guide for the country you are interested in.
Eagle-i is an internet portal maintained and updated by IALS library staff. It allows you to search for quality web resources on public international law.
A valuable free source is BAILII, the British and Irish Legal information Institute which is based and maintained at IALS. It provides free access to full text UK judgments and legislation on a wide range of subjects including public international law and also links to other free World Law databases. Jurisdictions covered in these resources include Commonwealth countries eg. AustLII (Australia) and CanLII (Canada), France, Germany, Italy, the USA and South Africa.
The following represent a sample of the available quality individual web resources on public international law.
United Nations Treaty Collection
European Court of Human Rights
Gabriela Femenia. Researching League of Nations Documents. Updated March/April 2024
Jonathan Pratter. À la recherché des Travaux Préparatoires: an approach to researching the drafting history of international agreements. (Globalex) Updated 2021
Linda Tashbook. Researching the United Nations (Globalex). Updated 2022