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International Law: International Treaties

Background

Other common terms for "treaties" include: international conventions, international agreements, covenants, protocols, pacts, and accords.  If they have only two parties, they are "bilateral" and if there are more than two parties, "multilateral."  Treaties are only binding on parties who have ratified them or acceded to them and have implemented them domestically.  The process of becoming a bound party to a treaty involves a number of steps, so it is important to determine the status of the party-state in which you are interested.  Signing a treaty is usually just the beginning of a country's process of becoming bound by it, and a party to a treaty does not necessarily mean that party has signed the treaty.

This is a general outline of the process [THIS NEEDS CHECKING]:

  1. Adoption of the final text of the treaty by the organization sponsoring the treaty, such as the United Nations, for example by passing a resolution adopting it, or through a Final Act.
  2. Signature by parties is an expression of willingness to participate, and is usually subject to ratification at home.  The treaty may not yet be in force, nor are the signatories necessarily bound by it.
  3. Entry into force is when the treaty, by its terms, becomes effective, usually after certain dates and thresholds have been met.
  4. Ratification occurs when a party has followed its own domestic procedures for approving the treaty, amended its domestic laws so as not to be in conflict with the treaty, and notified the others that it is willing to be bound by the treaty.
  5. Accession occurs when a party not originally involved with a treaty agrees to become a party after the fact.
  6. Declaration parties may make declarations setting out their understanding of the treaty, which may qualify the application of the treaty to that party.
  7. Reservation is a declaration by a party excluding part nof the treaty or setting conditions, which also qualifies the application of the treaty to that party.
  8. Depositary is the person having custody of the authentic (official) version of the treaty, deposited instruments relating to it, whether the treaty is in force, and the information on party status.

The same process occurs if there is an amendment to a treaty.  Modifications are not automatically binding on parties to the original treaty.

To interpret a treaty, you may wish to consult:

  1. the travaux préparatoires, or the drafts and background materials used in developing the treaty,
  2. the party's domestic ratification processes for that treaty, and
  3. commentary and case law respecting the treaty.

[NOTES: Add boxes for resources for doing treaty/international agreement research.  Consider whether we want a separate section or a separate research guide on United Nations research and sources.  We already have a separate research guide for EU research, which needs updating.]

Laura Barnett, "Canada's Approach to the Treaty-Making Process"

Daniel Dupras, "International Treaties, Canadian Practice"

 

 

Treaties that Canada is a Member

Other International Treaties

Travaux Préparatoires

  • Use the tools the sponsoring organization provides for identifying its documents to search for preparatory documents. For example, use AccessUN to search for the UN documents.
  • Sometimes, the treaty may be negotiated at a conference. Then use the conference website to locate relevant documents.
  • Search Library Catalogues and/or major legal indexes for published background materials. [Use “travaux preparatoires” as title keyword, and the treaty title as subject keyword, for example].