Brownlie's Principles of Public International Law

This is the eighth edition of Sir Ian Brownlie's classic distillation of public international law. Serving as a single volume introduction to the field as a whole, the book seeks to present international law as a system that is based on, and helps structure, relations among states and other entities at the international level. It aims to identify the constituent elements of that system in a clear and accessible fashion.

This eighth edition, fully updated by James Crawford, Whewell Professor of International Law at the University of Cambridge, continues to provide the balance, clarity and expertise expected from this classic text. Completely updated to take account of the many areas of expansion and development in international law which have occurred since earlier editions, all chapters have been reviewed and brought up to date. The eighth edition features a new introduction and the chapters on environmental law, immunities, responsibility, use of force and high seas freedoms have been substantially rewritten.

It remains an important textbook for students, undergraduate and graduate, treating core issues from a lawyer's perspective. It is also a vade mecum for practitioners desiring a solid footing on which to make further enquiries.

James Crawford is Whewell Professor of International Law and a Fellow of Jesus College in the University of Cambridge and concurrently Research Professor of Law at LaTrobe University. He previously held chairs at Adelaide and Sydney. He is a Senior Counsel (NSW) and also a member of the English bar, practicing from Matrix Chambers. He was the first Australian member of the United Nations International Law Commission and was responsible for the ILC's work on the International Criminal Court (1992-4) and for the second reading of the ILC Articles on State Responsibility (1997-2001). In addition to scholarly work on statehood, collective rights, investment law and international responsibility, he has appeared frequently before the International Court of Justice and other international tribunals, and is engaged as expert, counsel and arbitrator in international arbitration. From 1995-2003 and from 2006-10 he was Director of the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law in the University of Cambridge.