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LAW E271 2021-22 Syllabus

This document outlines an 11-week course on public international law taught by Dr. Dolunay Özbek. The course will cover the nature, subjects, and sources of international law, including treaties, customary international law, reservations, and the relationship between international and national law. It provides reading assignments and schedules lectures on topics like statehood, international organizations, and state responsibility. Exams will be held at midterm and end of term, with in-person review sessions due to the large class size. Lectures will be recorded and made available online.

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65 views

LAW E271 2021-22 Syllabus

This document outlines an 11-week course on public international law taught by Dr. Dolunay Özbek. The course will cover the nature, subjects, and sources of international law, including treaties, customary international law, reservations, and the relationship between international and national law. It provides reading assignments and schedules lectures on topics like statehood, international organizations, and state responsibility. Exams will be held at midterm and end of term, with in-person review sessions due to the large class size. Lectures will be recorded and made available online.

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asdsas asdmnsd
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW – I (LAW E/271)

Fall Term 2021-22

Dr. Dolunay Özbek


[email protected]
Santral Seyfi Arkan Building Room no.415

Office hours: on Zoom, subject to appointment by e-mail

THE NATURE, SUBJECTS AND SOURCES OF PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW

(1) Nature and Function of International Law and Law-Making (11 Oct
2021)
These lectures are intended to provide an overview of the setting in which
international law is made and applied. The development of “international law” from
set of rules governing the relationship between States to include those rules which
aim at governing the conduct of States in what was previously the reserved domain of
each State’s internal regulations will be charted

Suggested reading: Ademola ABASS, International Law: Texts, Cases and


Materials, 2nd ed., 2014, Chapter 1 (International law in the modern context)

(2) Sources of International Law (18 Oct 2021)


How rules are made in the international law system will be dealt with in these
lectures in terms of the distinctions such as material source / formal source, concepts
of law-making treaties, subsidiary sources, etc.
Pre-lecture preparation: Read, ICJ Statute art.38

Required reading: Ademola ABASS, International Law: Texts, Cases and


Materials, 2nd ed., 2014, Chapter 2 (Sources of international law)
Supplementary reading: Hugh THIRLWAY, “The Sources of International
Law”, Chapter 4 in Malcolm EVANS, International Law

(3) Customary International Law: Its Structure and Binding


Effect
(18 &25 Oct 2021)
This set of lectures will discuss the formation of rules of customary international law
in its two elements: the material element consisting of State practice and the
subjective element (opinio juris). The role of consent in providing binding effect to
these rules and the nature of jus cogens rules will also be specifically addressed. In
addition, the role international organization resolutions (such as those of the UN
General Assembly) play in developing and interpreting these rules will be discussed)
Pre-lecture preparation: Read North Sea Continental Shelf Cases para.s73
and 77; and Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLOT) art.53

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Required reading: Ademola ABASS, International Law: Texts, Cases and
Materials, 2nd ed., 2014, Chapter 2 (Sources of international law), especially pp.33-
48.
Vaughan LOWE, International Law, 2007, pp.58-61 and 61-63
Supplementary reading: pp.39-48 of Akehurst’s Modern Introduction to
International Law, 7th revised ed. by P. Malanczuk

(4) International Transactions, the most common (dare I say,


important) of which are Treaties: Conclusion and entry into force)
(1 Nov 2021)
The source of rights and obligations under international law are not restricted to
bilateral or multilateral acts. These lectures will first touch upon unilateral acts of
States which have consequences in international law. However, the most prevalent
source of international law rules today is treaties. The procedures by which treaties
come into existence, the stages of negotiation, adoption, authentication and
expression of consent to be bound will be laid out in detail in these lectures.

Pre-lecture preparation: Read VCLOT art.s 6-18

Required reading: Malgosia FITZMAURICE, “The Prectical Working of the


Law of Treaties”, Chapter 6 in Malcolm EVANS, International Law (Note: This
reading list covers the lectures 5 – 9)
Brownlie's Principles of Public International Law, ed. J. Crawford, 8 th ed.
pp.416-421

Supplementary reading: Ademola ABASS, International Law: Texts, Cases


and Materials, 2nd ed., 2014, Chapter 3 (The law of treaties)

(5)Reservation to Treaties (8 Nov 2021)


The subject of reservations to treaties, which are unilateral statements made by States
when expressing their consent to be bound by a treaty whereby it purports to modify
or exclude the legal effects of certain provisions of the treaty, has undergone some
changes to reach its current regime in the VCLOT, but is currently under
consideration in the ILC. These lectures will take the relevant provisions of the
VCLOT as its centerpiece but will also analyze its past, certain shortcomings and
possible developments.
Pre-lecture preparation: Read VCLOT art.s 19-23

(6) Observance and Application of Treaties including


Interpretation of Treaties (8 Nov 2021)
These lectures will probe into the meaning and manifestations of pacta sunt
servanda, intertemporal application of treaties, application of successive treaties and
amendment of treaties. Related to the application of treaties their interpretation will
be examined more closely.
Pre-lecture preparation: Read VCLOT art.s 26-31, art.s 39-41 and art.s 31-33
(for interpretation)

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(7)Invalidity, Termination and Suspension of the Operation of
Treaties (15 Nov 2021)
After having charted the course of the life of treaties, this last set of lectures will
consider the end of treaties, be it by consent of parties, because of a problem relating
to initial consent to be bound, by certain subsequent events or by the operation of
rules of international law.
Pre-lecture preparation: Read VCLOT art.s 46-64

(8) The Relation of International Law and National Law (15 Nov
2021)
International law simply requires States act in accordance with their obligations in
their own domain but it does not dictate the legal process by which this should be
made possible. Different approaches of national legal systems to the relationship
between national law and international law and the effect of one on the other will be
examined. However the matter is not one of substance, but of form. Specific attention
will be paid to the Turkish legal system in this context.
Pre-lecture preparation: Read, 1982 Constitution of the Turkish
Republic art.s 15, 16, 42, 92 and especially the last paragraph of art.90

Lecture notes may be provided after class.

Required reading: Brownlie's Principles of Public International Law, ed. J.


Crawford, 8th ed., pp.48-62

22 Nov 2021: REVISION BEFORE THE MIDTERM EXAM


Please note that this session will be face to face – per student body’s
request. However as the class is too crowded to safely gather all in one
room, we will have two of the same sessions, 2 hours each. The students
will be notified of which session they may attend.

(9) Subjects of International Law: Legal Personality and


Statehood
(6 & 13 Dec 2021)
These lectures will identify to whom international law is applied. The creation and
recognition of States, including the matter of self-determination will be examined.

Required reading: Malcolm SHAW, International Law,8th ed, Chapter 5


(Subjects of International Law) and Chapter 8 (Recognition)

(10) Subjects of International Law: International Organisations


and other candidates (20 & 27 Dec 2021)
These lectures will examine the personality and capacity of international
organizations. The relationship and difference between the concepts of personality
and capacity will be evaluated as leading to the possibility of sui generis entities that
may exist as actors in international law. Finally, some developments concerning
individuals as a topic of international law will be addressed.

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Required reading: Ademola ABASS, International Law: Texts, Cases and
Materials, 2nd ed., 2014, Chapter 5 (International organizations)
Supplementary reading: Malcolm SHAW, International Law,8th ed, Chapter
22 (International Organisations)

(11) State Responsibility (3 Jan 2022)


After having covered the creation of rules, these lectures will address the
consequences of breach of these rules. Issues covered will include, attribution of
conduct to State, enforcing responsibility against the offending State and,
circumstances precluding wrongfulness.

Required reading: Ademola ABASS, International Law: Texts, Cases


and Materials, 2nd ed., 2014, Chapter 13 (State Responsibility)

10 Dec 2022: REVISION BEFORE THE FINAL EXAM


Please note that this session will be face to face – per student body’s
request. However, as the class is too crowded to safely gather all in one
room, we will have two of the same sessions, 2 hours each. The students
will be notified of which session they may attend.

COURSE EVALUATION and ATTENDANCE

Fall Term LAW E/271 lectures will be conducted online as


mandated by the University. Practice sessions will be face to face. You
are free to attend which session suits your schedule. I will try to
arrange for a live-feed of the practice sessions for those who prefer not
to attend in person or cannot do so. As the student body has also
requested more face to face hours, we will have exam revisions in class
in person. As explained above, due to the high number of students
who are taking this course, the revision lectures (2 hours each) will be
repeated on the same day.

Lectures will be recorded and uploaded in the learn website for


students who may have conflicting courses or to listen again.

Bilgi University Regulations require students to attend at least 70 % of


the courses. However, you will NOT get FF for lack of attendance.

Overall end-of-term grade for the Public International Law course


will be calculated by the coursework grade which will comprise of one

4
quiz (10 %) date of which will be announced on the learn website and
a mid-term exam (40 %), and the final examination grade (50 %).

I wish you all a successful, fun and above all a very healthy term.

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