M. Ruffert, C. Walter, Institutionalised International Law, C.H. Beck, Hart Publishing, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft, Baden Baden: 2015, pp. 339 (original) (raw)

2016, Polish Yearbook of International Law

Anybody studying the law of international organizations is now in a far better situation than several decades ago. The gap was first filled when Sir Derek Bowett published his seminal book The Law of International Institutions. Since then several editions of this masterpiece have been released (most recently the sixth, edited by Philippe Sands and Pierre Klein in 2009). In the meantime, numerous other examinations of the topic in english have been provided, with perhaps the most obvious work being the monumental treatise International Institutional Law by Henry g. Schermers (continued now by Niels M. Blokker), which has been found to be indispensable in any serious legal library. Several other authors (including most notably C.W. Jenks, F. Seyersted, N. White or J. Klabbers) have presented their own expositions of the problem, in many respects offering a fresh look at the issues under examination. The need for a comprehensive analysis was also recognized by The Hague Academy of International Law, which decided to prepare its own bilingual textbook under the auspices of UNeSCO: Manuel sur les organisations internationales = A handbook on international organizations, with r.-J. Dupuy as an editor. In this regard one might be tempted to also include a reference to the comprehensive volume on the subject published in French, edited by evelyne Lagrange and Jean-Marc Sorel, providing yet another vision for approaching the complex matter. The reasons for such a proliferation of textbooks are largely known. The growing importance of the law, the training of law students, and the increased need for interdisciplinary research also provide the impetus underlying the reviewed book, as the authors themselves acknowledge at the outset (p. 3). The book under review is a translation of a textbook originally published in german by two leading german international lawyers. As such, making this work available to an english readership is a most welcome step. It offers a perspective developed by constant reliance on the continental experience, which is evidenced by the systematic references mainly to the doctrinal views held by the german-speaking scientific community. In the view of its authors the book is designed to offer the basis for a scientifically sound work on the law of international organisations. The target audience is primarily students of international law and international relations, as well as practitioners and interested lawyers. By putting emphasis on the decisive link between substantive and institutional issues and their treatment in public international law (p. 5), the authors have attempted to avoid offering yet another catalogue of institutional developments. Instead, they offer a carefully structured, concise, and in most cases accurate reference book, which may be BOOK revIeW