International Law As We Know It
Cyberwar Discourse and the Construction of Knowledge in International Legal Scholarship

Explores the role of international legal scholars in the construction of legal knowledge, looking at examples from the cyberwar debate.

Lianne J. M. Boer (Author)

9781108484831, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 14 October 2021

240 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 1.8 cm, 0.49 kg

International legal scholars tend to think of their work as the interpretation of rules: the application of a law 'out there' to concrete situations. This book takes a different approach to that scholarship: it views doctrine as a socio-linguistic practice. In other words, this book views legal scholars not as law-appliers, but as constructing knowledge within a particular academic discipline. By means of three close-ups of the discourse on cyberwar and international law, this book shows how international legal knowledge is constructed in ways usually overlooked: by means of footnotes, for example, or conference presentations. In so doing, this book aims to present a new way of seeing international legal scholarship: one that pays attention to the mundane parts of international legal texts and provides a different understanding of how international law as we know it comes about.

Acknowledgments
1. Knowing international law
2. 'Legal problem-solution' and the cyberwar discourse
3. 'Not 'armed force' in the literal sense'
4. 'The greater part of jurisconsults'
5. 'Call me again if you're ever ready to begin answering the questions'
6. In conclusion: international law as we know it
Appendix chapter 5
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: IT & Communications law [LNQ], International humanitarian law [LBBS], Public international law [LBB], Systems of law [LAF], Jurisprudence & philosophy of law [LAB]