Commitment and compliance : the role of non-binding norms in the international legal system

Abstract

Commitment and Compliance is the first book to evaluate the impact on state behaviour of international norms adopted in forms that are not legally binding. The use of such 'soft law' has increased dramatically with the proliferation of international organizations. Whether and how such norms can be used effectively to supplement or substitute for legally binding obligations forms the heart of this discussion. In the study, a project of the American Society of International Law, the authors examine four areas of international law: human rights, the environment, arms control, and trade and finance. For each area, they assess the use of non-binding norms and ask whether such norms engender state compliance. More generally, the discussion also addresses the nature of international law and the role of non-binding norms in the international legal system. Contributors to this volume - Dinah Shelton Christine Chinkin Peter M. Haas Richard B. Bilder Wolfgang H. Reinicke Jan Martin Witte Mary Ellen O'Connell Jonathan L. Charney Donald R. Rothwell Mohamed Ali Mekour Christopher C. Joyner Claire Shine Alexandre Kiss Beth Simmons Naomi Roht-Arriaza Laurence Boisson de Chazournes Lyuba Zarsky David A. Wirth Erika B. Schlager Francis Maupin Douglass Cassel Christopher McCrudden David S. Gualtieri Barry Kellman Richard L. Williamson, Jr. Abram Chayes Edith Brown Weiss