READERS' CORNER

Comparative Law:

This version of comparative law for lawyers provides a succinct introduction for US law librarians, law students, and lawyers about legal systems not founded upon the common law. It also provides some useful guidelines for researching the law of the covered jurisdictions, which is of particular value to foreign law librarians. It is a "must" for any law librarian contemplating the development of a foreign legal collection.

After introductory chapters on researching foreign law and contrasting academic perspectives and legal realities, the multiple-authored chapters present essays on Civil Law systems (emphasizing France and Mexico), Asian legal systems (emphasizing Japan and "both" Chinas), and African legal systems (emphasizing Ghana and Nigeria). Chapters 11 through 14 next provide suggestions on building foreign law collections. These include the "how to's," bibliographies of essential titles, draft collection development policies, and acquiring foreign legal materials (emphasizing "both" Europes). One chapter focuses on the procurement of English-language translations from A to Z.

The closing materials address acquisition of non-print foreign resources, including names and addresses of foreign and international law librarians willing to help those of us who are not experts in the intricacies of foreign law research.

Culture:

The Society's undergraduate professors, and teachers of International Relations or cultural studies, and anyone interested in fresh perspectives on diverse cultural issues should examine this sixteen-essay analysis. It presents an interdisciplinary guided tour by a number of authors, who point out the cultural influences that affect us on a daily basis. These essays include commentaries on British cultural studies, modern feminism, mass media, and the anthropological components of the contemporary communications environment.

Those of us who tend to concentrate on the narrow legal aspects of our daily endeavors, might profit from this form of enrichment-- which can only help to increase our sensitivity to the cultural layers of interaction between our students, our classrooms, and the others with whom we interact.

Dictionaries:

This is the first of two unique West publications dealing with Mexico. The other--reviewed in a prior issue of this UN Decade of International Law Newsletter--was Eckstein & Zepeda, Mexican Civil and Commercial Codes (with facing-page English-Spanish translations). This dictionary is a very useful reference tool for any attorney or other professional with cross-border transactions. It comprehensively presents the full range of legal terms, conveniently translated in both the Part One Spanish Term/English translation version, followed by the Part Two English Term/Spanish translation version of the dictionary. Eight US and Mexican legal professionals have thus collaborated to produce a "must" holding for any institution's library of essentials on transactions between English and Spanish-speaking nations.

Diplomacy/Force:

The use of naval power to "send a message" did not cease with the reign of British Queen Victoria. Its use has continued to play a prominent role in international affairs as recently as this year's "Taiwan" crisis, where the US President dispatched a number of US naval vessels to the Taiwan Strait--and the "Lebanon" crisis, whereby Israel used naval vessels to interrupt travel in Lebanon in a comparatively hostile environment.

This former English diplomat's assessment of the phenomenon of diplomacy from a position of strength adds to his prior editions by analyzing a number of such incidents occurring since the demise of the Cold War. One pervasive theme is that anyone involved in crisis management must recognize both the utility and the legacy of this form of diplomacy. If 1996 is any indication, then a variety of disciplines would do well to consider this contribution to various fields including diplomacy, force, history, and international relations.

Environment:

The eleven individually-authored essays in this collection were originally delivered by academics and practicing lawyers at a 1993 conference at Oxford University. The unifying theme is the review of national attempts at sustainable development--striking the balance between protecting the environment and encouraging economic development. There is a distinctly European flavor to the general tenor of the publication, with chapters emphasizing the environmental concerns of the UK and the European Community.

The first three chapters address UK regulation and pollution control devices. Following chapters include analyses of environmental barriers to trade and EC environmental regulation. There are also analyses of the impact by and on the laws of other countries, such as the US, although the non-UK materials deal with the more general aspects of international norms including GATT/WTO and the growth of US environmental regulation (by the General Counsel for Chrysler Corp.). The tables include the useful indexing of EC treaties, EC secondary legislation, other international treaties, and national legislation.

This is a useful contribution to the literature on sustainable development, as perceived through the lens of practitioners--and others concerned with the management of this arguably irreconcilable difference between the disparate economies of the Twenty-first Century.

European Community:

Society members who now teach, or are contemplating teaching, courses on the European Community should consider this new course book by two Oxford University professors (the other published book being the 1992 Blackstone Press 570-page paperbacked EEC Law). While it is much larger than its European competitor, its 9x 6" paperbacked format is conveniently packaged so as not to resemble the more common American casebook length and girth (e.g., West's 1992 European Community Law).

This publication combines the essential features of a reader, casebook, and documentary materials supplement--thus avoiding the expense of having to use more than one text to cover the subject. It contains a seventy-page Table of Cases, and a twenty-page Table of Treaties, regulations, EC & national decisions by country--evincing the authors' attention to detail and provision of the essentials for interpreting Community law. Coverage ranges from Chapter One on the Development of European Integration to Chapter Twenty-five on Completion of the Single Market.

Human Rights:

This book is a collection of essays on various features of the International Law on refugees and other minority groups. There are thirty-nine essays, by a roughly equal number of authors from different nations and continents. These articles are divided into three major parts: I--Refugees and Asylum; II--Minorities, Indigenous Peoples, Nations; and III--Human Rights and the Environment.

The editors have thus included diverse perspectives on distinct but related topics including the protection of stateless persons, asylum seekers, minorities, and vulnerable groups displaced by internal and international conflict. A number of these essays address the related constructs of self-determination, impact on regional stability, nationalism, nationality, and cultural preservation. The list of contributors is conspicuously distinguished, matched only by the editors obvious attention to organization and apparent requirement that contributors produce well-researched and documented analyses.

M. Nowak, U.N. COVENANT ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS: CCPR COMMENTARY (Engel, 1993) [947].

Now that an increasing number of countries are ratifying the CCPR (including the US), no human rights collection would be quite complete without this exhaustive treatment of the CCPR. The author has very capably collated and presented detailed analyses of the various provisions of the CCPR. Professor Nowak thus presents each segment of the CCPR, accompanied by fully documented and authoritative commentaries on each article--accompanied by a paragraph numbering system for ease of reference. The key-word index thus refers to paragraph numbers. The articles are set forth in both the English and French text, while the English-version of this work presents the author's analysis in the English language (the other version is published in the German language). There is also a brief mini-summary of content presented at the outset of each treaty section, prior to the author's analyses. Appendixes include the optional protocols, reservations, rules of procedure of the Human Rights Committee, Committee decisions, and a select bibliography.

This work is a researcher's dream, in terms of providing a most descriptive examination and appraisal of the text of the treaty and various interpretations. The author thus covers the twenty-year drafting history of the Human Rights Commission and General Assembly, as well as the sixteen-years of practice of the Human Rights Committee. This publication includes a great deal of academic literature, and references to the jurisprudence of human rights organs and national case law.

A. Rosenbaum (ed.), IS THE HOLOCAUST UNIQUE? (Westview, 1996) [222].

The central theme of this particular treatment of the Nazi Holocaust is the controversial question of whether there are historical parallels. In eight individually-authored chapters, the authors cover other genocides including slave trade from Africa, Turkey's 1915 Armenian Genocide, Stalin's Great Famine in the Ukraine, and Germany's treatment of gypsies.

The book also addresses the daunting question of denial and the politics of scholarship on genocide. Some articles perceive the Holocaust as being sui generis. Others assert that treating it as such trivializes the suffering inflicted on Europe's Jews and other minorities. Given recent claims that the Holocaust was overstated, this reader contains objective evidence about the defining events of the Nazi Holocaust.

This reader provides key insights regarding lessons learned, degree of universal application of the underlying principles spawning much of the post-War human rights laws, and troubling perspectives about the Holocaust's historical relation to other instances of politically motivated mass murder.

P. Weis, THE REFUGEE CONVENTION, 1951: THE TRAVAUX PREPARATOIRES ANALYZED WITH COMMENTARY (Cambridge, 1995) [383].

The late Dr. Paul Weiss, formerly Head of the Legal Division of the Office of the UN High Commission for Refugees, compiled this unique treatment of the 1951 Refugee Convention. Between two covers, one may thus find the convention's text and its Travaux Preparatoires, supplemented by related regional and national conventions, limited judicial decision references, and commentary. There are extensive endnote references to committee documents after each article. The author therein provides the reader/researcher with additional data for pursuing all aspects of the convention's development and subsequent application (including the 1967 Protocol).

This work is especially relevant for research about the historical underpinnings of the convention, in terms of which national representatives expressed what interpretational guidelines for future application. No library with any significant degree of human rights materials, or purporting to focus on international refugee law, would be complete without this remarkable compilation of details on the evolution of the Convention via its Travaux Preparatoires.

Int'l Legal Theory:

The 1992 Copenhagen Conference on Legal Polycentricity coined this new term for an old problem--a claimed single-value approach to International Law, which bears a distinctly European essence. Professor Sinha analyzes this daunting question from the perspective that the western-derived "tight" legal model is not sufficiently encompassing to recognize all relevant parameters of modern "legal" problems. Thus, International Law may be perceived as too-often divorced from cultural tradition and non-Western approaches. The vast differences in modern legal systems must be more rationally factored into the analysis of international legal problem solving. Their can be legal order, notwithstanding the lack of a universal system of laws for all nations.

Chapter 1 introduces the impact of this "polycentricity" on International Law. Chapter 2 continues to establish the contemporary model by exposing the clearly European essence of International Law, as it has evolved since statehood itself. Chapters 3 and 4 focus on the facts of civilizational pluralism and diversity. The last chapter then "wraps up" by analyzing the resulting impact of legal polycentricity on current applications of International Law. An extensive and well-conceived bibliography then closes the book with a rich vein of resource material for further exploration.

This is a very thought-provoking treatment of terms which are too-often taken for granted--for example, the meaning of "civilized," and whether international decision-makers need to incorporate more general principles of "law" from non-Western societies. It is also a good example of how to appropriately point out the need for course content that is more interdisciplinary than historical prototypes.

Int'l/Municipal Law Nexus:

The author began working on this book during Germany's occupation of Holland in 1944, and completed it (because of health reasons) with the assistance of two professors on law faculties in The Netherlands. This text is likely to become the premier study of a core theme in the monist/dualist debate on the fundamental nature of International Law. In addition to a very authoritative treatment of the essentials, Interactions employs some 2,000 cases emanating from both common law and civil law systems. The author provides numerous excerpts from actual cases, translating Dutch into English--but leaving in tact the original French or German, accompanied by English analyses of those cases.

The basics are divided into five chaptered Parts, followed by a sixth containing conclusions. Part 1: The Legal Nature of International Law at Large, as Seen by Courts--this segment of the book carries a comparatively exhaustive assortment of materials emphasizing adjudicatory perspectives on International Law. Section 1.2 carries ten pages, containing excerpts and the author's analyses of the major case law definitions of International Law. Part 2: Who do[es] Derive Rights and Obligations from International Law at Large?--the book then presents the case law with authored analyses about the playing field: States, international organizations, individuals, and legal persons under International Law. Part 3: Judicial Application of International Law at Large in the Municipal Legal Sphere--focusing on the basic concerns of national courts when actually applying International Law. Part 4: Legal Basis for Applying International Law at Large in Municipal Legal Orders--here, the book continues its "International Law actually applied" approach to related municipal law theses including legal basis and obligation to International Law in various countries and international organizations (other than the LON or UN). Part 5: Direct or Indirect Application of International Law at Large in Municipal Legal Orders--finally, the author accords a distinct chapter to the application of treaties.

One seeking a detailed analysis of the case law of many countries of the world (not just in Europe) must consider this book an essential ingredient for any serious undertaking. Prior to this work, many would have thought that no new publication could add much to the hundreds of books and articles already available. Interactions provides a significant dimension to the case analysis of the interplay of national and International Law.

J. Paust, INTERNATIONAL LAW AS LAW OF THE UNITED STATES (Carolina, 1996) [491].

This work is a welcome addition to the dearth of book-length coverage of a topic of immense concern--both in the US and abroad--written by an author who needs no introduction. Professor Paust's new book is not only well-written, but it also contains a rich vein of resources that may be worked for profit by teacher, student, researcher, and practitioner. It is as well-documented a source as one could find on this particular topic.

The author has organized the book in a way that not only covers the subject, but also presents it in a way that succinctly provides access to content. The first four chapters address the application of custom and treaty by the various branches of government. The next five chapters cover the US legal terrain associated with the application of the International Law of Human Rights regime. Chapters Ten through Thirteen analyze US responses to international jurisdictional concepts, including various facets of criminal law applications (including unlawful pardons and detention of prisoners). The final two chapters test the application of US doctrine regarding the war power and national security. In addition to the usual Index, there is an index of Founders, highlighting references to "early shapers of juristic expectation."

This excellent coverage, of a somewhat neglected topic in other book-length treatments of related themes, nicely occupies this gap in the literature--as well as confronting what many perceive as the incongruity between law and practice.

Int'l Practice:

Some litigation-oriented publications previously reviewed in this Newsletter have contained some rather lengthy practice perspectives on practice in various courts including the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights; or, analsyses of particular themes originating within the context of Private International Law (Conflict of Laws). This litigation handbook is a very useful primer for one seeking an overview of the civil procedure of more than a dozen State parties to the Brussels and Lugano Conventions. The 1968 Brussels Convention on Jurisdiction and Enforcement of Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters, and the 1988 Lugano Convention on Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters, respectively simplify reciprocal enforcement of judgments for members States of the European Union (Brussels Convention) and State parties to the European Free Trade Association (Lugano Convention).

The author succinctly provides detailed guidance on a host of related practice problems including jurisdiction, recognition and enforcement measures, interpretation of the Conventions, and how they have been implemented on a country-by-country presentation. The Glossary of terms provides a number of key terms, with definitions as applied under the two Conventions.

L. Low, et al. (ed.), THE INTERNATIONAL LAWYERS' DESKBOOK (ABA, 1996) [paper: 410].

Three lawyers have assembled a succinct practitioner-oriented reference tool designed to serve a variety of practical needs. The twenty-six lawyer-authored articles in this handy reference tool provide a whirl-wind overview of international practice concerns.

The reviewer can probably best serve the reader, in this instance, by an abbreviated summary of chapter-by-chapter content: international commercial transactions; financing; political risk insurance; payment methods; secured transactions; intellectual property rights; antitrust; securities law; US taxation of transactions; environmental law; customs law; export control (including sanctions & boycotts); the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act; government procurement; trade remedies/benefits programs; legalization of documents; litigation/arbitration; creditor's rights/bankruptcy; foreign investment in the US; immigration/nationality; labor law; wills, trusts, and estate transfers; family law; and selecting foreign counsel.

While there is no Index, the front matter Table of Contents serves as a useful guide to content. An insightful introduction by the editors furnishes some basic guidelines and resources for obtaining further detail. Law school libraries, professors, and other ASIL members should consider this useful reference guide to practical problems in contemporary international practice.

Int'l/Regional Organization:

"IGC" refers to the 1996 Intergovernmental Conference, destined to become a turning point in the future of the European Union. This book was spawned by a series of seminars (in 1995), hosted by the Cambridge University Centre for European Legal Studies. The authors of the individually-authored chapters are academics and practitioners with expertise in identifying and analyzing both the agendas and the priorities for the 1996 conference--devised as a mandatory periodic review of the historic 1992 Maastricht Treaty.

Covered issues include a variety of key themes, including reform of the Common Agricultural Policy, balance of powers between the Union and its Member States, EU economic/monetary policy, enlargement of the Union, international security measures, and the EU's external relations with other States. This publication provides a very practical approach to obtaining critical perspectives about key issues certain to emerge in future EU negotiations.

A. Gamble & A. Payne (ed.), REGIONALISM & WORLD ORDER (St. Martin's Press, 1996) [paper: 282].

This collection of essays analyzes different regions of the "world economy." It provides both an intuitive and authoritative description of the gravitation of States toward regional economic blocs--and the possibility that today's trade wars could be the prelude for tomorrow's military hostilities. Another pervasive the theme is the degree to which this form of regionalism is either compatible with, or the antithesis of, global independence.

The areas of focus in this multiple-author appraisal are Europe, the Americas, and Southeast Asia. The eight articles thus address the following: the political features of economic regionalism; the fear of "Fortress Europe;" Eastern Europe in transition ; US trade policy and Latin America; the potential remaking of the Americas via regional-building initiatives; Japan and Asia-Pacific programs such as ASEAN; the newly industrialized nations in East Asia; as well as an introduction and conclusion essays.

In the aftermath of the Cold War, the growing attention to economic integration makes this study timely, provocative, and informative. This would be an excellent supplemental reader for courses assessing Pacific Rim trade, the European Union, the Americas, and courses generally analyzing various forms of regionalism--from economic to the more integrated forms of associations of States.

L. Louis-Jacques & J. Korman (ed.), INTRODUCTION TO INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS (Oceana, 1996) [574].

This publication makes a rather unique contribution to the literature on accessing the documentation of international organizations. It thus provides the how, where, and why that is all too often obscured by lack of familiarity with international legal resources. It presents a form of self-instruction book on "how to find it" for those seeking greater access to the literature of and about certain international organizations. It consists of nineteen articles by authors, most of whom need no introduction to ASIL members, well-versed in the fields which they address.

The first of four parts provides general information about the general structure, publications, and features of the documentation of international organizations. The second part then coaches the reader on the specifics of UN documentation and its sources--including both print and electronic formats. Next is several essays on the European Community, followed by more essays on the Council of Europe. The final part of the book addresses OAS, NAFTA, and human rights NGOs. This book thus sets forth the essentials about primary and secondary materials, casebooks, CD ROM titles, finding aids, digests, reporters, periodicals, and electronic search engines--to name a few.

No library with a basic international component should overlook this particular resource for unraveling the mysteries associated with researching the documentation of international organizations.

P. Myers, SUCCESSION BETWEEN INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS (Geneva Grad. Inst., 1993) [185].

Succession between States has received a great deal of attention, particularly in the aftermath of the Cold War era. This booklet is a welcome addition to succession literature, because it analyzes organizations--a theme with great significance, but lacking the comparative degree of written consideration. Many international organizations have evaporated since WWII, with little attention via written appraisals. This concern is not irrelevant to the UN itself, an institution floundering on the shoals of financial disaster.

The author begins this analysis by reference to the fundamental norms of State succession, which is then nicely dovetailed with the comparatively recent and infrequent phenomenon of organizational succession. The book is divided into reviewing the definitional elements of organizational succession, forms of succession, complimented by their legal bases and effects. Theory is tempered by reference to contemporary practice, analysis by judicial decision-makers (including the Namibia ICJ statements regarding the UN as successor to the LON mandate system), and treaty assessment.

This reader is written in an effervescent style, supported by objective legal analysis, and authenticated by numerous authorities for undertaking further investigation.

G. Ostrower, THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS: FROM 1919-1929 (Avery, 1996) [paper: 176].

There is a dearth of materials that present the essentials of the LON process in a succinct and effervescent manner. This booklet helps fill this void, especially for those seeking a respite from the usual scholarly approach to legal topics. It carefully chronicals the course of the LON's evolution during a tumultuous first decade via the author's personal historical narrative, fifty photographs, and the twenty-six articles of the LON Covenant. The bibliography is both extensive and on point, for those in search of further details.

LON is divided into eight parts--ranging from the embryonic stages, to the trying tests of the 1920s, and concluding with an analysis of the successes that one might draw from the failures. One hopes that the author will produce a related volume--dealing with the LON's remaining operational period.

R. Rosenberg & S. Stein (ed.), ADVANCING THE MIAMI PROCESS: CIVIL SOCIETY AND THE SUMMIT OF THE AMERICAS (North/South Center Press, 1995) [paper: 427].

The December 1994 Summit of the Americas Declaration of Principles was a significant step in the approaching-universal process of regional integration--a process that may ultimately supplant nation-to-nation relations, as practiced in the now 300-year-old tradition of Westphalian Statehood. This contribution to public understanding of the impact of the Summit compiles the key documents and statements of the so-called "Miami Process," where thirty-four heads of State from the Western Hemisphere met in Miami, Florida. In contrast to previous hemispheric summits, this one occurred in the post-Cold War era--focusing on the integration of democratic principles, primacy of free markets, and the objective of far greater hemispheric integration than experienced in the last four decades. Also, the 1967 Punta del Este Conference (Uruguay) was held under auspices of the OAS, as opposed to the Miami Process spawned by a US diplomatic initiative.

The book begins with the basic official summit documents, including initiatives, declarations of principles, and resulting plan of action. This portion of the book also contains the relevant intergovernmental publications. The next part consists of proposal s from non-governmental sectors involving human rights, democratic political aspirations, the interplay of prosperity and economic integration, elimination of poverty, and sustainable development. The last part of this book contains the crucial summit correspondence and a list of participating organizations. The well-conceived Index serves to promote ready access to content.

Law of the Sea:

This UN document contains the compilation of national claims to the Territorial Sea (TS) and Contiguous Zones (CZ). This update is significant, as it is the first to be published since the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) entered into force in 1994. It is thus a very useful resource for the purpose of determining the degree of adherence to the agreements contained in the UNCLOS. For example, one can readily ascertain which of the 151 coastal States have published TS or CZ limits within treaty parameters (TS=128; CZ=all but one of the States that have established a CZ).

This version is probably the most authoritative source for coastal State rules of innocent passage existing between two covers--including the rules applicable to both commercial and war vessels. It is contains an alphabetized listing of national legislation from 141 nations on their respective TS and CZ regimes. As is fortunately typical of UN publications, this one furnishes footnote detail on alternative sources for further details regarding various national legislative statements.

NGOs:

NGOs are receiving an increasing degree of recognition in the academic literature. This particular contribution, which opens with a Foreword by the UN Secretary-General, analyzes how NGOs have discharged their mandates in a way that has positively influenced UN crisis management.

The first Part (of four) provides a sketch of a theoretical framework that has effectively pluralized global problem solving. The second Part of this book presents the specifics of just how nongovernmental organizations have impacted various UN initiatives, in the areas of human rights, the environment, and women's rights. The third Part covers relations between Third World NGOs and the UN, coalitions, and the growing partnership between the State, the NGO, and the UN--with an emphasis on Central America.

Readers seeking a succinct overview of the relation between the UN and key international NGOs might consider this collection of essays a good general "reader" for any course with a significant International Organizations component.

Outerspace/Environment:

Daily headlines have focused attention on a new threat since the Cold War: the environment. While a number of positive outcomes illustrate the value of various space programs, there is a latent price to be paid for all of the space debris which threatens the environment near the earth's surface. This book thus presents collection of twenty-five informative plain-English essays on the details of what editors frequently refer to as "space junk." It is the edited work-product of a 1992 interdisciplinary conference on this subject, held at the University of Chicago.

This book would be an excellent supplemental reader for space or environmental, both graduate and undergraduate, particularly for professors who recognize the comprehensive nature of this interdisciplinary problem.

Private Int'l Law:

This is an excellent presentation of eighteen country-by-country conflict of laws analyses--from Argentina to the USA. After an insightful seventy-page introduction by the UK's Professor Fawcett, it focuses on the circumstances for national decisions to decline jurisdiction in cases involving cross-border civil and commercial disputes.

The essential themes include forum non conveniens, lis pendens (parallel proceedings in different States), contractual choice of forum clauses, arbitration agreements, and forum shopping. The nations covered are: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada (common law and Quebec), Finland, France, Germany, the UK, Greece, Israel, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, and the USA.

There are useful tables--of cases, legislation, and treaty arrangements--followed by a brief but convenient Index of the book's overall subject matter. The organization is splendid, because the editor first required the presenters to respond via format contained in the Appendix Questionnaire (beginning with "Do you have in your state (country) a doctrine of forum non conveniens...").

Roman Law:

There has been an increasing interest in Roman Law, evinced by the number of recently published works on the subject. The professors within the American Society of International Law now have access to this useful textbook--or reader to accompany their Roman Law courses.

The nature of the Roman Law's enduring legacy has been illustrated by readily-traceable features of this ancient body of norms, still cited in today's case law in the various jurisdictions of the world. England's Professor Borkowski has produced a text that is well-written and organized, while covering this fascinating subject in an effervescent manner not always found in historical treatments of the law.

Probably the most useful feature is the presentation of the actual texts (e.g., Justinian) in bold print, followed by the author's explanations of their meaning and evolution.

A. Lewis (ed.), THE ROMAN LAW TRADITION (Cambridge, 1994) [234].

There has been an increasing interest in Roman Law, evinced by the number of recently published works on the subject. The professors within the American Society of International Law now have access to this useful reader, possibly to accompany courses or modules about Roman Law.

The nature of the Roman Law's enduring legacy has been illustrated by readily-traceable features of this ancient body of norms, still cited in today's case law in the various jurisdictions of the world. The editor has thus assembled thirteen essays, with a roughly equal number of English authors, each presenting a different facet of this rich tradition. The books opens with a succinct overview of the general Roman Law tradition, followed by readily digestible but authoritative reviews of the significant segments of the Roman Law and its impact on subsequent epochs of that law's evolution.

States/Sovereignty:

Events including the breakup of the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia, and the current Middle East peace process have combined to spawn a renewed interest in peaceful changes in State status--a relatively neglected area of international peace studies. The author presents various theoretical, philosophical, and historical perspectives in his quest to analyze conditions for affecting territorial change without the usual incidents of warfare and economic devastation. What bargaining processes can favorably impact changes in territory?

The author painstakingly evaluates some 100 events involving 19th and 20th Century territorial change. Combined with contemporary scenarios--including the Camp David Agreements and US/Panama Canal Treaty--he explores the relevant factors for the peaceful settlement of territorial disputes.

This work is a viable contribution to be considered by both the decision-maker and the student of international relations theory. The author's significant attention to providing useful resources and an exhaustive bibliography for further study make this a valuable book for use in a variety of diplomatic and academic contexts.

M. Olcott, CENTRAL ASIA'S NEW STATES: INDEPENDENCE, FOREIGN POLICY, AND REGIONAL SECURITY (US Inst. Peace, 1996) [paper: 202].

The Soviet Union's former territories had to quickly assimilate the features of democratic independent States, and a radically altered form of economic policy, with little experience in international relations. In this election year in the US, presidential politics has not produced a clear picture of foreign policy with respect to the central Asian republics--particularly Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. The author's work identifies these and other related problems with an arena of increasing interest to the West.

Beginning with an analysis of "premature birth," the author succinctly summarizes the essentials regarding continued ethnic problems, false hopes of cooperation, and the apparent search for some lesser form of reunification than that provided by the Soviet Union. Roughly half of the book's chapters focus on the specific problems in each of the above-mentioned geographic cogs in this particular arena.

The author provides both insightful analyses and somewhat unique perspectives, given the dearth of studies on this area of our "global village."

I. Zartman (ed.), COLLAPSED STATES: THE DISINTEGRATION AND RESTORATION OF LEGITIMATE AUTHORITY (Lynne Rienner, 1995), [paper: 303].

The dearth of literature on this topic makes this book a significant addition to the John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies African Studies Library. Decolonization, followed by the difficulty of many African States to manage their internal affairs, raises the question of whether the disruption of governmental authority and legitimacy signals the demise of Statehood in the Westphalian sense.
Seventeen individually-authored essays examine eleven of Africa's numerous States--assessing the causes of disintegration, as well as how the respective scenarios were (and could) be dealt with in the future. One central theme of the various essays is to identify the various methods for reaction by the international community, including UN action and foreign intervention. This work also serves as a benchpost for identifying States that are in danger of collapse, and the potential agents for reconstruction.

G. Lyons & M. Mastanduno (ed.), BEYOND WESTPHALIA?: STATE SOVEREIGNTY AND INTERNATIONAL INTERVENTION (John Hopkins, 1995) [paper: 324].

This collection of eleven authors/essays presents a detailed approach to the overly-ripe question of the degree to which intervention--on humanitarian and related grounds-- properly addresses the balance between national sovereignty and international controls. Legitimacy is the unifying theme, and whether intervention can be increasingly justified on legal or political grounds.

The most striking theme in this study is the analysis of post-Cold War bases for integrating word and deed in the international community. Environmental and weapons control issues are integrated into this treatment of reflections on the present and prospects for the future.

This is an excellent reader for one seeking a contemporary snapshot of the continued juxtaposition of Westphalian State sovereignty and the international legal norms in the ever-sensitive content of "intervention."

Trade:

This useful lawyer's guide is a new--and quite welcomed--offering in the publisher's Practitioner's Deskbook Series. It contains a history of the Uruguay Round, a 140-page commentary on the agreement establishing the WTO, and the text of the WTO agreement. The bulk of the book and diskette contains the text of the Annexes on interpretations and the specifics about particular areas of trade covered by the WTO agreements.

In addition to a handy, "between two covers" presentation of the WTO's essentials, the author has also provided a searchable diskette for ease of access to content. This book would be the ideal companion for any academic offering focusing on international trade, as well as an excellent resource for practitioners or researchers seeking reliable details on the relatively new WTO process.

H. Van Houtte, THE LAW OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE (Street & Maxwell, 1995) [429].

To the Editor's knowledge, this is the first English-language handbook on international trade. While the Belgian Avocate-author dwells on the European Community, he also provides practical insights for trade practitioners and academia in a broadly defined context. It is succinct, but quite authoritative--carrying useful tables of cases, national legislation, international sources. Its and well-documented textual analyses provide ample resources for further inquiry.

The first three chapters provide the essential backdrop for understanding the sphere of international trade (sources, role of States and international organizations, regulation). These preliminary analyses present insightful details about the playing field and the players exerting an impact on international trade. The author covers custom, soft law, sanctions, public and private law paradigms, and the role of GATT. The next six chapters address the specifics of international sales, such as the Convention on the International Sale of Goods, Incoterms, distribution agreements, technology transfer, foreign investment laws, finance, and payment. The remaining chapters present the dispute resolution mechanisms relevant to international trade, including enforcement of judgments, arbitration, and the like.

This would be a superb reader for the student/teacher, and practitioner seeking a general understanding of the foundational elements of international trade.

Treatises/Study Guides:

This exhaustive work is the third in a series of this publisher's multiple-author treatises containing the core of current legal issues in International Law. The first two, reviewed in prior issues of this Newsletter, are R. St. John Macdonald's Essays in Honour of Wang Tieya [Peking University] (Nijhoff, 1994) and Mohammed Bedjaoui's International Law: Achievements and Prospects (Nijoff & UNESCO, 1991).

Each tends to cover related, but distinct, waterfronts. This volume (fifty-seven articles and about as many authors) focuses on the issues of central concern to the UN Decade of International Law--an ambitious program essentially conceived to foster greater respect for, and observance of, International Law. The editors are professors in the UK and France. They have collated and edited the proceedings of the Doha (Qatar) International Law Conference (March 22-25, 1994). This conference was coordinated by the Asian-African Legal Consultative Committee, Secretariat of the UN, and Frere Cholmeley (Paris).

The first of six chapters analyses the role of the UN, and other entities including various governmental organizations, in fostering respect for International Law under auspices of the UN Decade process. The second chapter next addresses key issues arising under the '92 Rio Conference--an event shaping public opinion about the increasing importance of environmental degradation and sustainable development. This chapter first addresses the impact of armed conflict on the environment. It then proceeds to analyze environmental issues related to the global commons and the liability/damage principles associated moving hazardous waste. The sixth chapter also covers the Rio Conference. The third chapter covers the Law of the Sea--problems existing upon entry into force (1994), with an emphasis on migratory fish and straddling stocks. Chapter IV carries several articles addressing current problems with dispute settlement. Chapter V on humanitarian law analyzes issues regarding an international criminal court, safety zones for displaced persons, and humanitarian intervention. The second segment of the sixth chapter (which begins with the aftermath of the Rio Conference) closes the book with four environmentally-oriented articles on the New International Economic Order and its requiem in international environmental law.

The value of this publication is its snapshot of contemporary issues that have been, and will remain, with the international legal community for some time to come. The individual articles in each chapter are generally well-researched, splendidly written/edited, and useful for readers seeking succinct but thoughtful analyses of today's pressing concerns. One drawback of this significant contribution, to what has been previously described as a three-volume series, is the absence of an index.

S. Wheatley, SWOT INTERNATIONAL LAW (Blackstone, 1996) [paper: 181].

There seems to be a new offering in the subject of student study aids on at least an annual basis. This Newsletter's submission by an experienced English Lecturer in Law is geared toward Mstudents of International Law, and professors who choose to refer their students to "what's out there." The counterpart to this text from the UK might be the longer and more substantive West Nutshell Public International Law. This version of a student nutshell begins with suggested study and examination techniques in its first two chapters. The remaining nine chapters summarize the fundamentals of the substance of International Law (sources, jurisdiction, human rights, force, etc.). While briefer than the garden-variety reader in this discipline, SWOT is apparently the only text that offers helpful advice to students who--in the publisher's words --make the same mistakes time after time."

War Power/US:

A number of texts have undertaken the task of analyzing one of the most provocative themes in the US balance of powers debate: the interplay of the role of the President as Commander-in-Chief of US military forces, and the constitutional power to declare war constitutionally granted to the Congress. This addition to the literature does a remarkable job of succinctly covering the historical waterfront, from the earlier British model, up to the Clinton Administration's Policy on Reforming Multilateral Peace Operations.

The opening chapter illustrates the early constitutional framework, and ensuing precedents in various eras of the conflict between the U.S. President and the Congress. It is only this form of detail that exposes the evolving character of the debate. The author closes with a ninth analytical chapter on "Restoring Checks and Balances," followed by very useful appendixes that aid the reader by providing specific context--including the framer's debate, the UN Participation Act of 1945 (and its amendment), the Intelligence Oversight Act of 1991 and the 1994 Clinton Administration peacekeeping policy announcement.

This book might be considered "must" reading for any student of the murky balance of powers dilemma on the scope of the US President's war powers.

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