Lex pacificatoria

Last updated

The lex pacificatoria is a Latin neologism, which translates as 'pacific law' or the 'law of the peacemakers'; it refers to the law relating to agreements or treaties ending a state of war or establishing a permanent peace between belligerents, as articulated by state and non-state peacemakers, such as peace negotiators. [1] As such, it is a set of normativizing practices, the ‘industry standards’ of peacemakers. In its relationship with traditional legal doctrines such as the jus ad bellum , it is both incorporated in, and shapes, interpretations of binding legal instruments, and it can also be determinative of, or influence, court judgments. [2] The term was popularized by the legal scholar Christine Bell in her 2008 book On the Law of Peace: Peace Agreements and the Lex Pacificatoria. [3] [4] Bell contrasts the notion with the Law of War, stressing that the art of post-war peace deserves as much consideration as the waging of war, and the notion is related to the jus post bellum , the concept of justice after war, with which it has been critiqued. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sovereignty</span> Supreme authority within a territory, as well as external autonomy from other states

Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the person, body, or institution that has the ultimate authority over other people in order to establish a law or change existing laws. In political theory, sovereignty is a substantive term designating supreme legitimate authority over some polity. In international law, sovereignty is the exercise of power by a state. De jure sovereignty refers to the legal right to do so; de facto sovereignty refers to the factual ability to do so. This can become an issue of special concern upon the failure of the usual expectation that de jure and de facto sovereignty exist at the place and time of concern, and reside within the same organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treaty</span> Express agreement between nations under international law

A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal persons. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, pact, or exchange of letters, among other terms. However, only documents that are legally binding on the parties are considered treaties under international law. Treaties vary on the basis of obligations, precision, and delegation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stimson Doctrine</span> American foreign policy doctrine

The Stimson Doctrine is the policy of nonrecognition of states created as a result of a war of aggression. The policy was implemented by the United States government, enunciated in a note of January 7, 1932, to the Empire of Japan and the Republic of China, of non-recognition of international territorial changes imposed by force. The doctrine was an application of the principle of ex injuria jus non oritur. Since the entry into force of the UN Charter, international law scholars have argued that states are under a legal obligation not to recognize annexations as legitimate, but this view is controversial and not supported by consistent state practice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Law of war</span> International regulations of warfare

The law of war is the component of international law that regulates the conditions for initiating war and the conduct of warring parties. Laws of war define sovereignty and nationhood, states and territories, occupation, and other critical terms of law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Just war theory</span> Doctrine about when a war is ethically just

The just war theory is a doctrine, also referred to as a tradition, of military ethics which is studied by military leaders, theologians, ethicists and policy makers. The purpose of the doctrine is to ensure that a war is morally justifiable through a series of criteria, all of which must be met for a war to be considered just. The criteria are split into two groups: jus ad bellum and jus in bello. The first group of criteria concerns the morality of going to war, and the second group of criteria concerns the moral conduct within war. There have been calls for the inclusion of a third category of just war theory dealing with the morality of post-war settlement and reconstruction. The just war theory postulates the belief that war, while it is terrible but less so with the right conduct, is not always the worst option. Important responsibilities, undesirable outcomes, or preventable atrocities may justify war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treaty of Paris (1783)</span> Agreement ending the American Revolutionary War

The Treaty of Paris, signed in Paris by representatives of King George III of Great Britain and representatives of the United States of America on September 3, 1783, officially ended the American Revolutionary War and overall state of conflict between the two countries. The treaty set the boundaries between British North America and the United States, on lines "exceedingly generous" to the latter. Details included fishing rights and restoration of property and prisoners of war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peace treaty</span> Agreement to formally end hostilities between two or more warring parties

A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, which formally ends a state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice, which is an agreement to stop hostilities; a surrender, in which an army agrees to give up arms; or a ceasefire or truce, in which the parties may agree to temporarily or permanently stop fighting. The need for a peace treaty in modern diplomacy arises from the fact that even when a war is actually over and fighting has ceased, the legal state of war is not automatically terminated upon the end of actual fighting and the belligerent parties are still legally defined as enemies. This is evident from the definition of a "state of war" as "a legal state created and ended by official declaration regardless of actual armed hostilities and usually characterized by operation of the rules of war". As a result, even when hostilities are over, a peace treaty is required for the former belligerents in order to reach agreement on all issues involved in transition to legal state of peace. The art of negotiating a peace treaty in the modern era has been referred to by legal scholar Christine Bell as the lex pacificatoria, with a peace treaty potentially contributing to the legal framework governing the post conflict period, or jus post bellum.

Jus ad bellum is a set of criteria that are to be consulted before engaging in war in order to determine whether entering into war is permissible, that is, whether it will be a just war. This is distinct from the set of rules that ought to be followed during a war, known as jus in bello.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International trade law</span> Rules for trade between countries

International trade law includes the appropriate rules and customs for handling trade between countries. However, it is also used in legal writings as trade between private sectors. This branch of law is now an independent field of study as most governments have become part of the world trade, as members of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Since the transaction between private sectors of different countries is an important part of the WTO activities, this latter branch of law is now part of the academic works and is under study in many universities across the world.

International humanitarian law (IHL), also referred to as the laws of armed conflict, is the law that regulates the conduct of war. It is a branch of international law that seeks to limit the effects of armed conflict by protecting persons who are not participating in hostilities and by restricting and regulating the means and methods of warfare available to combatants.

The Algiers Agreement was a peace agreement between the governments of Eritrea and Ethiopia that was signed on 12 December 2000, at Algiers, Algeria, to formally end the Eritrean–Ethiopian War, a border war fought by the two countries from 1998 to 2000. In the agreement, the two parties reaffirmed the Agreement on Cessation of Hostilities, which had been signed on 18 June 2000.

International law, also known as "law of nations", refers to the body of rules which regulate the conduct of sovereign states in their relations with one another. Sources of international law include treaties, international customs, general widely recognized principles of law, the decisions of national and lower courts, and scholarly writings. They are the materials and processes out of which the rules and principles regulating the international community are developed. They have been influenced by a range of political and legal theories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Union citizenship</span> Legal right conferred to citizens of EU member states

European Union citizenship is afforded to all citizens of member states of the European Union (EU). It was formally created with the adoption of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty, at the same time as the creation of the EU. EU citizenship is additional to, as it does not replace, national citizenship. It affords EU citizens with rights, freedoms and legal protections available under EU law.

The history of international law examines the evolution and development of public international law in both state practice and conceptual understanding. Modern international law developed out of Renaissance Europe and is strongly entwined with the development of western political organisation at that time. The development of European notions of sovereignty and nation states would necessitate the development of methods for interstate relations and standards of behaviour, and these would lay the foundations of what would become international law. However, while the origins of the modern system of international law can be traced back 400 years, the development of the concepts and practises that would underpin that system can be traced back to ancient historical politics and relationships thousands of years old. Important concepts are derived from the practice between Greek city-states and the Roman law concept of ius gentium. These principles were not universal however. In East Asia, political theory was based not on the equality of states, but rather the cosmological supremacy of the Emperor of China.

Westphalian sovereignty, or state sovereignty, is a principle in international law that each state has exclusive sovereignty over its territory. The principle underlies the modern international system of sovereign states and is enshrined in the United Nations Charter, which states that "nothing ... shall authorize the United Nations to intervene in matters which are essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of any state."

International law is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for states across a broad range of domains, including war, diplomacy, economic relations, and human rights. Scholars distinguish between international legal institutions on the basis of their obligations, precision, and delegation.

Jus post bellum is a concept that deals with the morality of the termination phase of war, including the responsibility to rebuild. The idea has some historical pedigree as a concept in just war theory. In modern times, it has been developed by a number of just war theorists and international lawyers. However, the concept means different things to the contributors in each field. For lawyers, the concept is much less clearly defined, and many have rejected the usefulness of the concept altogether. The concept continues to attract scholarly interest in the field of international humanitarian law.

Ex factis jus oritur is a principle of international law. The phrase is based on the simple notion that certain legal consequences attach to particular facts. Its rival principle is ex injuria jus non oritur in which unjust acts cannot create law.

<i>Targeted Killings</i> 2012 book edited by Claire Finkelstein, Jens David Ohlin, and Andrew Altman

Targeted Killings: Law and Morality in an Asymmetrical World is a non-fiction compilation book about targeted killing edited by Claire Finkelstein, Jens David Ohlin, and Andrew Altman. It was published by Oxford University Press in 2012. The book grew out of contributions by the authors to a conference in April 2011 at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Targeted Killings features eighteen essays in five sections arranged by topic. The work argues that after the 11 September attacks by Al-Qaeda in 2001, the United States and other countries began to see the tactic of targeted killing differently. The practice of targeted killing had previously been accepted in situations of self-defence in military settings; after 11 September 2001 it was used to kill non-combatants and those not directly involved in a particular armed force.

Christine Bell, FBA, FRSE, is a legal scholar, specialising in human rights law. As of 2018, she is Professor of Constitutional Law and Assistant Principal at the University of Edinburgh. Bell graduated from Selwyn College, Cambridge, with her undergraduate law degree in 1988, before completing a master of laws degree at Harvard University in 1990. She qualified as a Barrister in that year and, after passing the New York bar examination, she worked at Debevoise & Plimpton. She was then Director of the Centre for International and Comparative Human Rights Law at Queen's University Belfast from 1997 to 1999, and then Professor of Public International Law at the University of Ulster from 2000 to 2011. One of Bell's most notable contributions is the concept of the lex pacificatoria.

References

  1. Fellmeth, Aaron X.; Horwitz, Maurice (2009), "Lex pacificatoria", Guide to Latin in International Law, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/acref/9780195369380.001.0001, ISBN   978-0-19-536938-0 , retrieved 2020-04-13
  2. Bell, Christine (2013). "Peace settlements and international law: from lex pacificatoria to jus post bellum" (PDF). Research Handbook on International Conflict and Security Law: 499–546. doi:10.4337/9781849808576.00020. ISBN   9781849808576.
  3. Bell, Christine, 1967- (2008). On the law of peace peace agreements and the lex pacificatoria. Oxford University Press. OCLC   1131990137.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. O'Donoghue, Aoife (2009). "On the Law of Peace: Peace Agreements and the Lex Pacificatoria". International Criminal Law Review. 9 (5): 867–871. doi:10.1163/156753609x12507729201552. ISSN   1567-536X.
  5. Cryer, R. (2012). "Law and the jus post Bellum: Counseling caution". In May, Larry; Forcehimes, Andrew (eds.). Morality, jus post bellum, and international law. Cambridge University Press. pp. 223–249. ISBN   978-1-107-02402-1. OCLC   793947148.