Sources of International Law

1987 Words8 Pages
U.G. SYNOPSIS SUBMISSION SOURCES OF INTERNATIONAL LAW SUBMITTED BY K.R.GOKUL SUNDAR. Ist Yr 'A' sec UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF ELAIYARAJA.C SCHOOL OF EXCELLENCE IN LAW, TNDALU , CHENNAI. SCOPE OF INTERNATIONAL LAW I.INTRODUCTION: The word "source" comes from the french word "sorse" which means the orgin, birth or beginning. International law or jus gentium means the law of the nations. Sir Humphrey Waldock of International law commission, defines International Law as "The body of rules and principles of action which are binding upon civilized states in their relations with one another". Identification of these rules is at the core of their proper enforcement. In other words, knowing what the rules are how they are formed, and when they are formed, and when they are breached, lies at the heart of applying sanctions for possible misbehaviour. Understanding the sources of international law, set of rules of the international community, is thus vital for an efficient functioning of the world society. Any community is said to function more effectively towards the general welfare of its members if it follows a certain set of rules. The international community is no exception to this. The welfare superiority of the rule system springs from the fact that the benefits of decreased uncertainty about the threats of the outside world created by rules and their enforcement commonly overweigh the costs of compliance with them. This view is sustainable both from a communitarian as well as an individualistic perspective. The community of states is a very specific community when compared to national society. However, there is no world government to enact laws from above. The states have to decide on the guiding principles themselves under the shadow of anarchy. Moreover, the international community also lacks an effective
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