Treaty Research Process
When conducting treaty research, a researcher should:
1) Locate the treaty text (from an authoritative source)
2) Determine whether the treaty is still in force?
3) Determine whether there been any litigation (U.S. or other) regarding the treaty?
4) Determine whether there are questions about interpretation? Consider:
– Article 31 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties
--Commentaries, judicial decisions, drafting history(Travaux Préparatoires).
Research Guides
The following guides for Treaty research are recommended as starting points:
- Guide to Treaty ResearchThis guide from the Columbia University law library offers an in depth introduction to treaty research.
- United Nations Research GuideThis guide from the Georgetown University law library provides research guidance on United Nations documents, including a section dedicated to treaties.
- Treaties & Agreements Legal Research TutorialAs a collaborative project between Duke University School of Law and University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, This tutorial is designed to teach students research strategies and methodology for researching both print and electronic sources of international legal materials, including treaties.
- À la Recherche des Travaux Préparatoires:This guide from GlobaLex provides guidance on researching the drafting history of international agreements.
Subscription Databases
While limited treaty content is available through large subscription services, such as Weslaw and Lexis, most researchers will incorporate specialized databases, such as the ones below.
- U.S. Treaties and Agreements Library This link opens in a new windowThis library includes all U.S. treaties, whether currently in-force, expired, or not-yet officially published. This is the world's largest and most complete online collection of U.S. treaties and agreements and includes such prominent collections as the United States Treaties and Other International Agreements set (commonly referred to as the "Blue set"), as well as famous sets from Bevans, Miller, Malloy and others.
- Proquest Congressional This link opens in a new windowProQuest Congressional offers access to congressional publications dealing with the wide variety of topics addressed by Congress, including activities relating to treaties.
Free Websites
- United Nations Treaty Series (UNTS) OnlineSearch for United Nations Treaties through this United Nations Treaty Collection.
- Hague Council on Private International Law (HCCH)With 83 Members (82 States and the European Union) representing all continents, the Hague Conference on Private International Law is a global inter-governmental organisation. A melting pot of different legal traditions, it develops and services multilateral legal instruments, which respond to global needs.
- World Trade Organization (WTO)This site provides access to approximately 60 WTO agreements and decisions, totalling 550 pages.
- International Court of Justice (ICJ)This site complies International Court of Justice treaties.
Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties
The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, found at A/Conf.3927 (1969), 1155 U.N.T.S 331, or 8 I.L.M. 679, specifies the structure and rules for treaties.
Bluebook Citations
While it is not the global standard, the Bluebook 21st edition offers treaty citation details through Table 4.
See also, International Citator and Research Guide: The Greenbook, K89 .I58.