Dr. Hua Zhang
Room 902
Faculty of Law, Nanjing University
Email: fxyzhanghua@nju.edu.cn
Course Objectives
This course introduces the student to the basic legal concepts, principles and rules governing State behavior in international relations, including the nature and sources of international law, the law of treaties, international law and national law, international legal personality and statehood, jurisdiction and immunity, law of territory, law of the sea, state responsibility, international dispute settlement, use of force in international law.
Course Learning Outcomes
- Understand the key legal concepts, principles, and rules underpinning the international legal system
- Develop the ability to identify/assess the status of rules of international law, using the appropriate international legal methods and research techniques
- Apply international law to specific problems of contemporary significance, both globally and regionally
Teaching Methods
The course will be taught by a combination of lectures, guided class discussion (on pre-assigned readings/questions), and student presentations.
Students are responsible for all assigned readings before each class meeting and are expected to participate regularly and actively in class discussions.
Assessment
• General class participation (including discussion and presentation) [30%]
• One written assignments [20%]
• Final examination [50%]
Textbook
Martin Dixon, Textbook on International Law, 6th edn., Oxford University Press, 2007.
Optional Reading
Martin Dixon et al., Cases and Materials on International Law, 5th edn., Oxford University Press, 2011.
Ian Brownlie, Principles of Public International Law, 7th edn., Oxford University Press, 2008. Malcolm Shaw, International Law, 6th edn., Cambridge University Press, 2008.
Documents
Charter of the United Nations (UN Charter, 1945)
Statute of the International Court of Justice (ICJ Statute, 1945) Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (VCLT, 1969) United Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS, 1982)
Draft Articles on Responsibility of States for International Wrongful Acts (ARSIWA, 2001)
Cases
1.Whaling in the Antarctic (Australia v. Japan: New Zealand Intervening), ICJ Judgment of 31 March 2014.
2.Territorial and Maritime Dispute (Nicaragua v. Colombia), Judgment, I.C.J. Reports 2012, p. 624.
3.Jurisdictional Immunities of the State (Germany v. Italy: Greece intervening), Judgment, I.C.J.
Reports 2012, p. 99.
4.Application of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Georgia v. Russian Federation), Preliminary Objections, Judgment, I.C.J. Reports 2011, p.70.
5.Accordance with International Law of the Unilateral Declaration of Independence in Respect of Kosovo, Advisory Opinion, I.C.J. Reports 2010, p. 403.
6.Gabcikovo-Nagymaros Project (Hungary/Slovakia), Judgment, I. C. J. Reports 1997, p. 7.
7.Maritime Delimitation and Territorial Questions between Qatar and Bahrain, Jurisdiction and
Admissibility, Judgment, I. C. J. Reports. 1994, p. 112.
8.Case concerning the difference between New Zealand and France concerning the interpretation or application of two agreements, concluded on 9 July 1986 between the two States and which related to the problems arising from the Rainbow Warrior Affair, RIAA, Vol. XX, 1990, pp. 215-284.
9.Military and Paramilitary Activities in und against Nicaragua (Nicaragua v. United States of America), Merits, Judgment, I.C.J. Reports 1986, p. 14.
10.Military and Paramilitary Activities in and against Nicaragua (Nicaragua v. United States of America), Jurisdiction and Admissibility, Judgment, I.C.J. Reports 1984, p. 392.
11.United States Diplomatic and Consular Staff in Tehran, Judgment, I. C. J. Reports 1980, p. 3.
12.The Case of the S.S. “Lotus”, Publications of PCIJ, 1927, Series A, No.10.
Useful Website
ITLOS: http://www.itlos.org/
