This book represents one of the first comparative studies of international treaty ratification processes in multiple issue areas. It employs the comparative case study method, drawing on original research, elite interviews, and discursive analyses of government documents in Europe, Australia, and North America.

A comparative study of international treaty ratification processes in multiple issue areas, this text employs the comparative case study method, drawing on original research, elite interviews, and discursive analyses of government documents in Europe, Australia, and North America.

Are you alive? What makes you so sure? Most people believe this question has a clear answer—that some law defines our status as living (or not) for all purposes. But they are dead wrong. In this pioneering study, Elizabeth Price Foley examines the many, and surprisingly ambiguous, legal definitions of what counts as human life and death. Foley reveals that “not being dead” is not necessarily the same as being alive, in the eyes of the law. People, pre-viable fetuses, and post-viable fetuses have different sets of legal rights, which explains the law's seemingly inconsistent approach to stem cell research, in vitro fertilization, frozen embryos, in utero embryos, contraception, abortion, homicide, and wrongful death. In a detailed analysis that is sure to be controversial, Foley shows how the need for more organ transplants and the need to conserve health care resources are exerting steady pressure to expand the legal definition of death. As a result, death is being declared faster than ever before. The "right to die," Foley worries, may be morphing slowly into an obligation to die. Foley’s balanced, accessible chapters explore the most contentious legal issues of our time—including cryogenics, feticide, abortion, physician-assisted suicide, brain death, vegetative and minimally conscious states, informed consent, and advance directives—across constitutional, contract, tort, property, and criminal law. Ultimately, she suggests, the inconsistencies and ambiguities in U.S. laws governing life and death may be culturally, and perhaps even psychologically, necessary for an enormous and diverse country like ours.

This book offers an exceptionally well informed and well documented study of the processes by which a Treaty is not only created, but managed and adapted as a living organism, responding to changing political and economic circumstances throughout its life. Bermuda 2, which governed air services between the UK and the USA from 1977 till 2008, had to accommodate rapid but volatile market growth, conflicting policies for a more open market, and a market structure which evolved from national champions to multinational alliances. With stakes high enough for Presidents and Prime Ministers to intervene at key moments, the dramatic narrative (Part I) is helpfully cross-referenced to a fully annotated Treaty text (Part II) as well as a unique collection of supplementary documents (Part III). These three elements offer students of international law and international relations, as well as to-day’s post-BREXIT practitioners, a comprehensive guide to the wide range of legal instruments and negotiating strategies that may be used to govern and regulate a major industry within the framework of a Treaty relationship.

Offers the first-ever comprehensive treatment under international law of the foundational human right to life.

The Oxford Guide to Treaties is the authoritative reference point for anyone studying or involved in the creation or interpretation of treaties and other forms of international agreement. For centuries, treaties have regulated relations among nation states. Today, they are the dominant source of international law. From trade relations to greenhouse gases, from shipwrecks to cybercrime, treaties structure the rights and obligations of states, international organizations, and individuals. Being adept with treaties and international agreements is thus an indispensable skill for anyone engaged in international relations, including international lawyers, diplomats, international organization officials, and representatives of non-governmental organizations. This second edition of the award-winning volume from Professor Duncan B. Hollis provides a comprehensive guide to treaties, shedding light on the rules and practices surrounding the making, interpretation, and operation of these instruments. Foundational issues are covered, from defining treaties and their alternatives, to examining current theorizations about the treaty in international law. Chapters review specific stages in the treaty's life-cycle, including formation, application, interpretation, and exit. Special issues associated with treaties involving the European Union and other international organizations are also included. A section sampling over four hundred actual treaty clauses complements these scholarly treatments. These real examples help illustrate different approaches treaty-makers can take on topics such as entry into force, languages, reservations, and amendments.