Digest of United States Practice in International Law 2002
The Office of the Legal Adviser is pleased to announce the publication of the Digest of United States Practice in International Law for calendar year 2002. In order to assist readers in locating the full text of documents which are excerpted in the 2001 Digest but readily accessible elsewhere, the volume includes citations to Internet or other public sources. The listing here has been created for documents that are not readily available.
In his Introduction to the 2002 Digest, William H. Taft, IV, Legal Adviser for the Department of State, commented:
Calendar year 2002 gave rise to a broad range of significant and sometimes novel issues of international law. Many developments again highlighted the need to protect our national security against a different kind of enemy through the use of force in self-defense, non-proliferation and arms control efforts, the detention of unlawful enemy combatants and establishment of military commissions, continued counter-terrorism efforts, the imposition of sanctions, and the freezing of governmental assets, sometimes made available for payment of claims by individuals against terrorist states. At the same time, there were notable developments in non-confrontational contexts, including the fields of human rights, trade and investment, law of the sea, international claims and state responsibility, treaty practice, and international crime. This volume continues the commitment of the Office of the Legal Adviser to make readily available some of the most significant documents reflecting the practice of the United States in the fields of public and private international law. We believe that there is considerable benefit to the continued development of international law in annually collecting and publishing representative briefs, statements, judicial decisions and similar documents relating to the relevant positions, practices and procedures of the United States. This volume is the fourth to be published since the Digest project was resurrected a short three years ago. While moving ahead with current year volumes, our co-editors have also reached back to fill in the years since publication of the Digest was suspended following completion of the 1981-88 volumes, produced by our colleague Marion Nash Leich in 1995. The 1989-90 Digest volume has already been published this year, and we expect to complete and publish a multi-volume set covering the years 1991-99 sometime in 2004, along with the annual volume for calendar 2003. In the current volume, both the content and the organization of the Digest have undergone continued refinement. Additional efforts have been made to identify and include documents prepared by other departments and agencies of the United States Government, as well as other changes. Most importantly, we continue to welcome The current volume has been edited by Sally Cummins and David Stewart of this Office. Work is under way on additional volumes covering the years 1991 through 1999, and on a volume for 2003.
The Digest of U.S. Practice in International Law for calendar year 2002, as well as for calendar years 1989-1990, 2000, and 2001, is available for purchase from the International Law Institute, The Foundry Building, 1055 Thomas Jefferson St. NW, Washington, DC 20007. Contact Peter Whitten, Director of Publishing, at (202) 247-6006.
feedback from readers in order to make this publication even more useful in the future.
The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department. External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.