Treaties & International Frameworks

Article 22

The premises of a diplomatic mission are inviolable. The authorities of the receiving State may not enter them without the consent of the head of the mission.

Article 27

The receiving State shall permit and protect free communication on the part of the mission for all official purposes. The diplomatic bag shall not be opened or detained.

Article 29

The person of a diplomatic agent shall be inviolable. He shall not be liable to any form of arrest or detention.

Article 31

A diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State, and shall also enjoy immunity from its civil and administrative jurisdiction except in certain enumerated cases.

22 U.S.C. § 254a

Establishes the framework for the privileges and immunities of foreign missions and their members in the United States.

22 U.S.C. § 254c

Authorizes the President and Secretary of State to specify privileges and immunities for members of missions on the basis of reciprocity.

22 U.S.C. § 254e

Requires liability insurance for motor vehicles operated by members of missions and their families.

Article 26. Pacta sunt servanda

Every treaty in force is binding upon the parties to it and must be performed by them in good faith.

Article 27

A party may not invoke the provisions of its internal law as justification for failure to perform a treaty.

Article 31

A treaty shall be interpreted in good faith in accordance with the ordinary meaning given to its terms in their context and in light of its object and purpose.

Article 53

A treaty is void if, at the time of its conclusion, it conflicts with a peremptory norm of general international law (jus cogens).

Article 5

Consular functions include protecting the interests of nationals, furthering trade, and issuing passports and visas.

Article 36

Consular officers shall have the right to visit a national of the sending State who is in prison, custody, or detention, and to arrange for legal representation.

Article 43

Consular officers and consular employees shall not be amenable to the jurisdiction of the judicial or administrative authorities of the receiving State in respect of acts performed in the exercise of consular functions.

Article 1 (Constitution)

The purpose of the Universal Postal Union is to secure the organization and improvement of the postal services and to promote the development of international collaboration among the member countries.

Article 2 (Constitution)

The Universal Postal Union shall have its seat in Berne. It is established under the name of the Universal Postal Union.

Article 3 (Constitution)

The territory of each member country shall constitute a single postal territory for the reciprocal exchange of postal items. Freedom of transit shall be guaranteed throughout the entire territory of the Union.

Article 4 (Constitution)

The Universal Postal Congress is the supreme authority of the Union. It meets not later than two years after the entry into force of the Acts of the preceding Congress.

Article 5 (Constitution)

Every country may establish restricted unions with the aim of improving postal services. Restricted unions must not be contrary to the Acts of the Union.

Article 1

Definitions: 'Carrier' includes the owner or charterer who enters into a contract of carriage with a shipper. 'Goods' includes goods, articles, merchandise, and articles of every kind except live animals. 'Carriage of goods' covers the period from the time when the goods are loaded to the time when they are discharged from the ship.

Article 2

Subject to the provisions of Article 6, under every contract of carriage of goods by sea to which the Rules apply, the carrier shall be bound to properly and carefully load, handle, stow, carry, keep, care for, and discharge the goods.

Article 3

The carrier shall be bound before and at the beginning of the voyage to exercise due diligence to make the ship seaworthy, properly equip and supply the ship, and make the holds and all other parts of the vessel fit and safe for the carriage of the goods. The carrier shall also issue a bill of lading showing the leading marks, the number, quantity, and apparent order and condition of the goods.

Article 4(2)

Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be responsible for loss or damage arising or resulting from numerous causes, including act, neglect, or default of the master, mariner, or pilot in the navigation or management of the ship; fire, unless caused by the actual fault of the carrier; perils of the sea; act of God; act of war; act of public enemies; arrest or restraint of princes or rulers; seizure; quarantine restrictions; or insufficiency of packing.

Article 4(5)

Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be liable for the loss of or damage to goods in an amount exceeding 100 pounds sterling per package or unit unless the nature and value of the goods have been declared by the shipper before shipment and inserted in the bill of lading.

Article 5

The carrier shall be entitled to the benefit of the Rules even if the bill of lading is not signed, provided the goods have been received by the carrier or his agent.

Article 3

Every State has the right to establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles, measured from baselines determined in accordance with this Convention.

Article 17

Subject to this Convention, ships of all States, whether coastal or land-locked, enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea.

Article 56

In the exclusive economic zone, the coastal State has sovereign rights for the purpose of exploring, exploiting, conserving, and managing the natural resources, whether living or non-living, of the waters superjacent to the seabed and of the seabed and its subsoil.

Article 76

The continental shelf of a coastal State comprises the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas that extend beyond its territorial sea throughout the natural prolongation of its land territory to the outer edge of the continental margin, or to a distance of 200 nautical miles where the margin does not extend that far.

Article 87

The high seas are open to all States, whether coastal or land-locked. Freedom of the high seas is exercised under the conditions laid down by this Convention and by other rules of international law, and comprises, inter alia, navigation, overflight, fishing, and scientific research.

Harter Act § 1 (46 U.S.C. § 30701)

The owner shall exercise due diligence to make the vessel seaworthy, properly equipped, manned, and supplied, and to make the holds and all other parts of the vessel fit and safe for the carriage of the goods.

Harter Act § 3

If the owner has exercised due diligence, neither the vessel nor the owner shall be liable for loss or damage resulting from faults or errors in navigation or in the management of the vessel.

COGSA § 4(2)

Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be responsible for loss or damage arising or resulting from a long list of causes, including act, neglect, or default of the master, mariner, or pilot in the navigation or management of the ship.

COGSA § 4(5)

Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be liable for the loss of or damage to goods in an amount exceeding $500 per package unless the nature and value of the goods have been declared by the shipper before shipment and inserted in the bill of lading.

COGSA § 13

The Act applies to all contracts of carriage by sea to or from ports of the United States in foreign trade.

Rule A

There is a general average act when, and only when, any extraordinary sacrifice or expenditure is intentionally and reasonably made in time of peril for the common safety of the ship and cargo.

Rule B

General average sacrifices and expenditures shall be borne by the different contributing interests on the basis of the values at the termination of the common maritime adventure.

Rule C

Only such losses, damages, or expenses which are the direct consequence of the general average act shall be allowed as general average. Loss or damage to the ship or cargo shall not be made good as general average if it has arisen from delay, whether on ship or shore.

Rule F

Any extra loss or damage caused by a general average act shall be allowed in general average. Wages and maintenance of the crew shall not be allowed as general average during any period of delay.

Article 1

The Convention applies to public documents which have been executed in the territory of one Contracting State and which have to be produced in the territory of another Contracting State, including documents issued by a court, administrative documents, and notarial acts.

Article 3

The only formality that may be required in order to certify the authenticity of a document is the addition of an apostille, issued by the competent authority of the State from which the document emanates.

Article 4

The apostille shall be placed on the document itself or on an extension, and must conform to the model annexed to the Convention. It shall specify the place and date of issue, the authority issuing it, the person who signed the document, and the capacity in which the person acted.

Article 5

The apostille shall be signed by the competent authority and shall bear the seal or stamp of the authority. The signature, seal, and stamp of the apostille are exempt from any further certification.

Article II

Each Contracting State shall recognize an agreement in writing under which the parties undertake to submit to arbitration all or any differences which have arisen or which may arise between them in respect of a defined legal relationship. The court of a Contracting State, when seized of an action in a matter in respect of which the parties have made an arbitration agreement, shall refer the parties to arbitration.

Article III

Each Contracting State shall recognize arbitral awards as binding and enforce them in accordance with the rules of procedure of the territory where the award is relied upon, under the conditions laid down in the Convention.

Article V

Recognition and enforcement of the award may be refused only if the party against whom it is invoked furnishes proof of incapacity of the parties, invalidity of the agreement, lack of proper notice, or if the award deals with matters beyond the scope of the submission to arbitration. Recognition may also be refused if the award is contrary to the public policy of the country where it is sought to be enforced.

Article 1

The State as a person of international law must possess the following qualifications: a permanent population, a defined territory, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with the other States.

Article 3

The political existence of the State is independent of recognition by the other States. Even before recognition, the State has the right to defend its integrity and independence, to provide for its conservation and prosperity, and to organize itself as it sees fit.

Article 4

States are equal before the law. Each State has the right to the exercise of the rights inherent in its sovereignty and to the free choice of the means for exercising them.

Article 5

The fundamental rights of States are not susceptible to being affected in any manner whatsoever by the use or threat of force or by any other act of coercion whatsoever.

Article 8

No State has the right to intervene in the internal or external affairs of another.

Treaty of Munster (January 30, 1648)

Peace between the Holy Roman Empire and France and their respective allies. It recognized the sovereignty of the Dutch Republic and confirmed the territorial settlements of the war.

Treaty of Osnabruck (October 24, 1648)

Peace between the Holy Roman Empire and Sweden and their respective allies. It granted territorial concessions to Sweden and confirmed the rights of the German states of the Empire.

Territorial Settlement

Each prince of the Empire was confirmed in the right to make treaties and alliances with foreign powers, provided they were not directed against the Emperor or the Empire itself.

Religious Settlement

The Peace extended legal recognition to Calvinists alongside Catholics and Lutherans, and established that rulers could determine the religion of their territories, with protections for minority faiths who were permitted to practice in private.

Section I, § 1

The law of war is the law of nations in its relations to war. It comprises the rules governing the conduct of war, the rights and duties of belligerents, and the treatment of persons and property in occupied territory.

Section II, § 15

Military necessity admits of all direct destruction of life or limb of armed enemies, and of other persons whose destruction is incidentally unavoidable in the armed contests of the war.

Section II, § 16

Military necessity does not admit of cruelty, that is, the infliction of suffering for the sake of suffering or for revenge, nor of maiming or wounding except in fight, nor of torture to extort confessions.

Section III, § 44

All wanton violence committed against persons in the invaded country, all destruction of property not commanded by the authorized officer, all robbery, all pillage or sacking, even after taking a place by main force, all rape, wounding, maiming, or killing of such inhabitants, are prohibited under the penalty of death.

Section IV, § 56

A prisoner of war is subject to no punishment for being a public enemy, having never borne arms against his captors, or for any act done by him before his capture. He is to be treated with humanity.

Article 2

The Convention applies to aircraft, aircraft engines, railway rolling stock, and space assets, as defined in the relevant protocols. Each category of equipment is governed by a separate protocol that adapts the Convention to that category.

Article 8

An international interest is constituted by a charge, lease, or conditional sale, and is effective upon the conclusion of the agreement and the debtor's right to possess the asset. The interest must be registered in the international registry to have priority.

Article 29

A registered international interest has priority over an unregistered interest and over interests registered later in time. The priority of competing interests is determined by the order of registration in the international registry.

Article 30

The international registry shall be established and operated by the Supervisory Authority, which shall ensure the efficient operation of the registration system and the integrity of the records.

Chapter II

An intermediary's securities account records the securities held for the account holder. The account holder has a right to receive distributions and to exercise the rights attached to the securities held in the account.

Chapter III

A disposition of intermediated securities takes effect by debiting and crediting the relevant securities accounts. The intermediary must carry out the disposition in accordance with the instructions of the account holder.

Chapter IV

An account holder's rights in intermediated securities are not affected by the insolvency of the intermediary or of another account holder. The account holder's rights are protected against the claims of the intermediary's creditors.

Chapter VI

A security interest in intermediated securities is created by the entry of a notation in the securities account. The priority of competing security interests is determined by the order of notation in the account.

Article 1

The purpose of the Bank is to promote the cooperation of central banks, to provide additional facilities for international financial operations, and to act as trustee or agent in regard to international financial settlements entrusted to it under agreements with the parties concerned.

Article 3

The Bank is incorporated and has its seat in Basel, Switzerland. It may establish branches and agencies in other places with the approval of the General Meeting.

Article 8

The Bank's capital is divided into shares, which are subscribed by the central banks of the participating countries. The Bank may accept deposits and grant loans to central banks, and may buy and sell gold and other instruments.

Article 24

The Bank shall act in accordance with the principles of sound banking and shall not engage in speculative operations. It shall conduct its business with due regard to the interests of the central banks and the stability of the international monetary system.

Article 1

The Convention defines the temporary admission of goods with relief from import duties and taxes. Temporary admission means customs procedure under which certain goods can be brought into a customs territory conditionally relieved from payment of import duties and taxes.

Article 2

Goods covered by an ATA Carnet shall be admitted temporarily without the payment of import duties and taxes, and without the need to comply with any other customs formalities, provided that the goods are re-exported within the period of validity of the Carnet.

Article 3

The ATA Carnet is valid for one year from the date of issue. The goods must be re-exported within this period, and the Carnet must be presented to the customs authorities each time the goods enter or leave a country.

Article 11

Each Contracting Party shall accept the ATA Carnets issued by the customs authorities or by the organizations guaranteeing the Carnets in the other Contracting Parties, and shall provide the same facilities for goods covered by such Carnets as it provides for goods covered by Carnets issued in its own territory.

Article 1 (Constitution)

The purposes of the Union are to maintain and extend international cooperation for the improvement and rational use of telecommunications of all kinds, to promote and to offer technical assistance to developing countries in the field of telecommunications, and to promote the adoption of a broader approach to telecommunications in the global information economy.

Article 4 (Constitution)

The Union shall effect allocation of the radio-frequency spectrum and registration of radio-frequency assignments so as to avoid harmful interference between radio stations of different countries. The Union shall also coordinate efforts to eliminate harmful interference and to improve the use of the spectrum and orbits.

Article 5 (Convention)

The Union shall adopt international regulations for telecommunication services and shall ensure their implementation by the member states. The regulations shall cover the technical and operational aspects of telecommunications, including the use of the radio-frequency spectrum and satellite orbits.

Article 12 (Convention)

The Plenipotentiary Conference is the supreme organ of the Union. It has the power to amend the Constitution and the Convention, to determine the general policies of the Union, and to elect the members of the Radio Regulations Board and the Secretary-General.

Article 1 (Convention)

The Contracting Powers shall issue instructions to their armed land forces which shall be in conformity with the Regulations respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land, annexed to the present Convention.

Article 3 (Convention)

A belligerent party which violates the Regulations shall, if the case demands, be liable to pay compensation. It shall be responsible for all acts committed by persons forming part of its armed forces.

Regulations, Article 1

The laws, rights, and duties of war apply not only to armies, but also to militia and volunteer corps fulfilling the following conditions: to be commanded by a person responsible for his subordinates; to have a fixed distinctive emblem recognizable at a distance; to carry arms openly; and to conduct their operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.

Regulations, Article 43

The authority of the legitimate power having actually passed into the hands of the occupant, the latter shall take all steps in his power to re-establish and insure, as far as possible, public order and safety, respecting at the same time the laws in force in the country.

Regulations, Article 46

Family honour and rights, individual life, and private property, as well as religious convictions and liberty, must be respected. Private property cannot be confiscated.

Regulations, Article 47

Pillage is formally forbidden.

Article 4

Prisoners of war, within the meaning of the present Convention, are persons belonging to one of the categories subject to the Convention, including members of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict, members of regular armed forces who profess allegiance to a government not recognized by the Detaining Power, and members of other militias and volunteer corps fulfilling the conditions of lawful belligerency.

Article 13

Prisoners of war must at all times be humanely treated. Any unlawful act or omission by the Detaining Power causing death or seriously endangering the health of a prisoner of war in its custody is a serious breach of the Convention. Prisoners of war must at all times be protected, particularly against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity.

Article 17

Every prisoner of war, when questioned on the subject, is bound to give only his surname, first name and rank, date of birth, and army, regimental, personal or serial number. No physical or mental torture, nor any other form of coercion, may be inflicted on prisoners of war to secure from them information of any kind whatever.

Article 84

A prisoner of war shall be tried only by a military court, unless otherwise permitted by the laws of the Detaining Power. No prisoner of war may be sentenced by any military court for an act which was not forbidden by the law of the Detaining Power or by international law, in force at the time the act was committed.

Article 130

Grave breaches to which the preceding Article relates shall be those involving any of the following acts, if committed against persons or property protected by the Convention: wilful killing, torture or inhuman treatment, wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health, compelling a prisoner of war to serve in the armed forces of the hostile Power, or wilfully depriving a prisoner of war of the rights of fair and regular trial.

Article 27

Protected persons are entitled, in all circumstances, to respect for their persons, their honour, their family rights, their religious convictions and practices, and their manners and customs. They shall at all times be humanely treated, and shall be protected especially against all acts of violence or threats thereof and against insults and public curiosity.

Article 31

No physical or moral coercion shall be exercised against protected persons, in particular to obtain information from them or from third parties.

Article 32

The High Contracting Parties specifically agree that each of them is prohibited from taking any measure of such a character as to cause the physical suffering or extermination of protected persons in their hands. This prohibition applies not only to murder, torture, corporal punishments, mutilation and medical or scientific experiments not necessitated by the medical treatment of a protected person.

Article 33

No protected person may be punished for an offence he or she has not personally committed. Collective penalties and likewise all measures of intimidation or of terrorism are prohibited. Pillage is prohibited. Reprisals against protected persons and their property are prohibited.

Article 47

Protected persons who are in occupied territory shall not be deprived, in any case or in any manner whatsoever, of the benefits of the present Convention by any change introduced, as the result of the occupation of a territory, into the institutions or government of the said territory, nor by any agreement concluded between the authorities of the occupied territories and the Occupying Power, nor by any annexation by the latter of the whole or a part of the occupied territory.

Article 1

The contracting States recognize that every State has complete and exclusive sovereignty over the airspace above its territory.

Article 3

No state aircraft shall fly over the territory of another State or land thereon without authorization by special agreement or otherwise, and in accordance with the terms thereof. Aircraft used in military, customs, and police services shall be deemed to be state aircraft.

Article 5

Each contracting State agrees that all aircraft of the other contracting States, being aircraft not engaged in scheduled international air services, shall have the right, subject to the observance of the terms of this Convention, to make flights into or in transit non-stop across its territory and to make stops for non-traffic purposes without the necessity of obtaining prior permission.

Article 6

No scheduled international air service may be operated over or into the territory of a contracting State, except with the special permission or other authorization of that State, and in accordance with the terms of such permission or authorization.

Article 17

Aircraft shall have the nationality of the State in which they are registered.

Article 1

A refugee is a person who, owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.

Article 3

The Contracting States shall apply the provisions of this Convention to refugees without discrimination as to race, religion or country of origin.

Article 16

A refugee shall have free access to the courts of law on the territory of all Contracting States.

Article 26

Each Contracting State shall accord to refugees lawfully in its territory the right to choose their place of residence to which they wish to move and the right of free movement within its territory, subject to regulations generally applicable to aliens.

Article 33

No Contracting State shall expel or return ('refouler') a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.

Article 1

This Convention specifies the law applicable to a trust and governs its recognition.

Article 2

For the purposes of this Convention, the term 'trust' refers to the legal relationships created, inter vivos or on death, and constituted by a settlor, when assets have been placed under the control of a trustee for the benefit of a beneficiary or for a specified purpose.

Article 3

The trust shall be governed by the law chosen by the settlor. The choice must be express or implied in the terms of the trust, and, where the law is implied, must be ascertainable from the terms of the trust and the circumstances of the case.

Article 6

The law chosen by the settlor shall govern the validity of the trust, its construction, its effects, and the administration of the trust.

Article 15

The Convention does not prevent the application of the rules of the law of the forum in matters concerning the protection of creditors in matters of insolvency, the personal effects of marriage, succession, and the transfer of title to property.

Article I (Purposes)

The purposes of the International Monetary Fund are: to promote international monetary cooperation; to facilitate the expansion and balanced growth of international trade; to promote exchange stability and maintain orderly exchange arrangements; to assist in the establishment of a multilateral system of payments; and to give confidence to members by making the general resources of the Fund temporarily available to them under adequate safeguards.

Article IV (Exchange arrangements)

Each member shall collaborate with the Fund and other members to assure orderly exchange arrangements and to promote a stable system of exchange rates. A member shall avoid manipulating exchange rates or the international monetary system in order to prevent effective balance of payments adjustment or to gain an unfair competitive advantage over other members.

Article V (Operations)

The Fund shall adopt policies on the use of its general resources and shall determine the terms and conditions of its transactions. A member desiring to purchase the currency of another member shall present a request to the Fund, and the Fund may, if it deems it appropriate, limit the amount of its holdings of a member's currency.

Article VIII (General obligations)

No member shall, without the approval of the Fund, impose restrictions on the making of payments and transfers for current international transactions. No member shall engage in any discriminatory currency arrangements or multiple currency practices. Each member shall furnish the Fund such information as it may request for the discharge of its duties.