The Role of Domestic Courts in Treaty Enforcement
A Comparative Study

This book examines whether domestic courts in twelve countries actually provide remedies to private parties who are harmed by a violation of their treaty-based rights.

David Sloss (Edited by)

9781107633742, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 6 March 2014

658 pages, 14 tables
22.9 x 15.2 x 3.4 cm, 0.87 kg

This book examines the application of treaties by domestic courts in twelve countries. The central question is whether domestic courts actually provide remedies to private parties who are harmed by a violation of their treaty-based rights. The analysis shows that domestic courts in eight of the twelve countries - Australia, Canada, Germany, India, the Netherlands, Poland, South Africa, and the United Kingdom - generally do enforce treaty-based rights on behalf of private parties. On the other hand, the evidence is mixed for the other four countries: China, Israel, Russia, and the United States. In China, Israel, and Russia, the trends are moving in the direction of greater judicial enforcement of treaties on behalf of private parties. The United States is the only country surveyed where the trend is moving in the opposite direction. US courts' reluctance to enforce treaty-based rights undermines efforts to develop a more cooperative global order.

1. Introduction David Sloss
2. Does international law obligate states to open their national courts to persons for the invocation of treaty norms that protect or benefit persons? Sean D. Murphy
3. Australia Donald R. Rothwell
4. Canada Gib Van Ert
5. China Xue Hanqin and Jin Qian
6. Germany Andreas Paulus
7. India Nihal Jayawickrama
8. Israel David Kretzmer
9. Netherlands Andre Nollkaemper
10. Poland Lech Garlicki, Ma?gorzata Masternak-Kubiak and Krzysztof Wójtowicz
11. Russia William E. Butler
12. South Africa John Dugard
13. United Kingdom Anthony Aust
14. United States David Sloss
15. The role of domestic courts in treaty enforcement: summary and conclusions Michael P. Van Alstine.

Subject Areas: Public international law [LBB], Comparative law [LAM], International relations [JPS]