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International Legal Research
FSU College of Law Library
Margaret Clark
January 2006
Review of Sources & Strategies
• United Nations Documents
• Multilateral Treaties
• Case law
United Nations
Four types of documents• Periodicals -- U.N. Chronicle
• Sales Publications -- Yearbooks, annuals, reports or studies
• Masthead Documents -- Provisional records
• Official Records – meeting records, resolutions, reports
Document Symbols
• Documents are identified by a symbol
• Identified by issuing body
• To locate document, important to know different parts of symbol
• Use handout as guide
U.N. Databases
• Official Document System ODS 1993 +
• AccessUN 1948 +
• UNBISnet 1979 +
• UN-I-QUE 1946 +
Official Document System (ODS)
• Official repository of UN documents• Full-text images in pdf format• Official documents from 1993• Resolutions from 1946• Does not contain:
– Press releases– Sales publications– Treaties
• ODS Training Guide
On this screen, accessible at http://documents.un.org, you may choose a search interface from the six official languages. In this example we select “English.”
This screen prompts you to choose between the “Simple,” “Advanced” and “Global” search screens. To begin, we choose “Simple Search.”
Date Column
Search for older resolution
Access UN 1948 to date
• Comprehensive, easy to search• Unofficial; generally not full text• Use ODS for full-text after 1992• Use it to search your library’s (FSU) holdings• Provides access to ALL four types of UN
documents.• Individual articles are indexed.• Treaties are indexed • Documents from the six UN bodies are indexed
What is UNBISnet ?
• 1979 to present• Online catalog of the UN Library in NY and Geneva.• Bibliographic database with links to recent full-text
documents• Includes all UN documents as well as non-UN holdings,
Allows for highly advanced searches– Subject searching – Title searching: Use title and notes keyword option, since many
titles are generic– Can limit by type of material– Speeches – Voting Records: by keyword or resolution symbol
In order to access UNBISnet, type http://unbisnet.un.org into the address bar of any Internet browser and press “enter.”
What type of information is included in UNBISnet?
• Bibliographic RecordsCatalogue of United Nations documents and publications indexed by the UN Library in New York and Geneva. Also included are commercial publications and other non-UN sources held in the collection of the Library in NY.
•Voting RecordsThe voting records for resolutions which were adopted - either without a vote or by roll-call or recorded vote - by the General Assembly and the Security Council.
•Index to SpeechesCitations to speeches made in the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council and the Trusteeship Council.
UN-I-QUE
• Electronic tool for identifying the symbols of UN documents
• Good for locating certain human rights documents– Declarations adopted by the General Assembly
• Decl AND child– Periodic reports submitted by countries in compliance
with intl human rights treaties to which they are a party
• Name of country AND periodic AND keyword (e.g. child)– Rapporteurs’ Reports in the areas of human rights
and int’l law• rapporteur* AND report AND child*
U.N. Internet Sites
• UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has a searchable database
• UN Human Rights Bodies links to all other UN entities involved in human rights promotion and protection
• UN Treaty Body Database includes documents by the committees set up to monitor treaty implementation
• UN Documentation Centre Includes documents primarily from major UN bodies & press releases
• UN Documentation Research Guide Quick Links
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
U.N. Current Awareness
• U.N. News Center
• UN Press Briefings Archive
• Researching Press Releases
• UN Treaty Body Recommendations email service
Treaties
Two elements to treaty research
1. Finding text• Authoritative?• Most recent?
2. Determining Status • who has signed and ratified?• entered into force?• changed by subsequent protocols or amendments?
Finding Treaties and Text
• Treaty Collections– General online collections– Human Rights collections– Treaties of regional organizations– Non-governmental organizations
General Collections
• UN Treaty Collection– Access via FSU Databases page– Use Treaty Handbook for overview of
depository practice– Use Treaty Reference Guide for definitions of
key terms– Status of Multilateral Treaties Deposited with t
he Secretary-General
General Collections
• EISIL Electronic Information System for International Law– Extensive database of quality resources– Three types of resources
• Primary documents• Web sites• Research Guides
– Arranged by 13 categories of International Law
Human Rights Collection
• International Human Rights Treaties from OHCHR– Text of treaties in subject listing– New instruments under consideration– Status of ratification
• Office of the UNHCR
• U. of Minn. Human Rights Library
Regional Collections
• European Union – EUR-Lex database• Council of Europe• OAS treaties
– Basic documents pertaining to human rights• African States• Asia
• Collection of Web sites
Non-governmental Sources
• Amnesty International (Treaty page)
• ICRC
Recent Treaties
• International Legal Materials ILM– Lexis INTLAW lib; ILM file– Westlaw ILM
• Law Reviews• Newspaper sources• UN publications
“Statement of Treaties and International Agreements Registered or Filed and Recorded with the Secretariat during the Month of…”
Access through UN-I-QUE; then search UNBISNET
Commentary and analysis
• ASIL – web site search engine– ASILEX database
• International Law Reports Westlaw & Lexis
• CIAO database
• Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals
• PAIS Public Affairs Information Service
• Lexis and Westlaw journals
Current Awareness• ASIL
– International Law in Brief• Bi-monthly email service• Great analytical abstracts on int’l law documents
– ASIL Insights• Monthly email service
• International Law Update– LexisNexis INTLAW; ILAWUP file
• Group of IL newsletters– LexisNexis INTLAW; INTLTR– Area of law > by topic > Int’l law > news & info >
newsletters
• Keeping Current guide – excellent tool
International Courts
• Databases
• Updating cases
• Locating Judicial Decisions handout
International Courts - Databases
• World Legal Information Institute– Human Rights Courts & Tribunals Page– International Courts & Tribunals Project
• HUDOC– Portal for European Convention of Human Rights– Case-law collection
• Court > Judgments• Commission > Decisions (Admissablity)• Committee of Ministers > Resolutions
International Courts - Databases
• European Union– Human Rights & Democratisation Policy– EUR-Lex database
International Courts - Databases
• Inter-American Human Rights– Cases
– Inter-American Commission on Human Rights– Inter-American Court on Human Rights
– Databases• Official Web sites cases through Nov 2005
• U of Minnesota Human Rights through 2004
• Westlaw IACHR-OAS through 2005
• WorldLII selected cases through 2003
Updating cases
Research in Secondary literature• Westlaw: JLR, TP-ALL, • Lexis: Secondary Legal>Law Reviews &
Journals>Law Reviews by Area of Law• Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals• Index to Legal periodicals
The End
