The incorporation of international law is the process by which

international agreements 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 perso ...

become part of the

municipal law Municipal law is the national, domestic, or internal law of a sovereign state and is defined in opposition to international law. Municipal law includes many levels of law: not only national law but also state, provincial, territorial, regional, ...

of a

sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a polity, political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defin ...

. A country incorporates a treaty by passing domestic legislation that gives effect to the treaty in the national legal system. Whether incorporation is necessary depends on a country's domestic law. Some states follow a

monist Monism attributes oneness or singleness (Greek: μόνος) to a concept e.g., existence. Various kinds of monism can be distinguished: * Priority monism states that all existing things go back to a source that is distinct from them; e.g., i ...

system where treaties can become law without incorporation, if their provisions are considered sufficiently self-explanatory. In contrast

dualist Dualism most commonly refers to: * Mind–body dualism, a philosophical view which holds that mental phenomena are, at least in certain respects, not physical phenomena, or that the mind and the body are distinct and separable from one another ** ...

states require all treaties to be incorporated before they can have any domestic legal effects. Most countries follow a treaty ratification method somewhere between these two extremes.

Monist systems

In monist systems like the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, treaties can normally be ratified only after they are approved by the legislature, but the treaties then become legally binding in domestic law if they are self-executing.

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

is another example of a monist system. Under

French law The Law of France refers to the legal system in the French Republic, which is a civil law legal system primarily based on legal codes and statutes, with case law also playing an important role. The most influential of the French legal codes is ...

, ratified treaties are considered to be superior to domestic legislation.Art. 55,
French Constitution of 4 October 1958.
'' However ratification must often be approved by the

French Parliament The French Parliament (french: Parlement français) is the bicameral legislature of the French Republic, consisting of the Senate () and the National Assembly (). Each assembly conducts legislative sessions at separate locations in Paris: ...

, especially in cases where the treaty "modifies provisions which are matters for statute".Art. 52,
French Constitution of 4 October 1958.
'' In such cases, incorporation is often either redundant or very little is required.

Dualist systems

The dualist position is exemplified by the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, where treaty-making is considered to be the exclusive competence of "

Her Majesty's Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

" (the executive). All treaties must be incorporated if they are to have any effect on domestic legislation. To do otherwise would violate the doctrine of the

sovereignty of Parliament Parliamentary sovereignty, also called parliamentary supremacy or legislative supremacy, is a concept in the constitutional law of some parliamentary democracies. It holds that the legislative body has absolute sovereignty and is supreme over all ...

, which reserves legislative primacy to the British parliament. However, treaties may have interpretative value, and judges consider that Parliament, in the absence of clear contrary intention, did not intend for an Act to conflict with a ratified treaty. The position of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

is intermediate to the two extremes described above. The

Supremacy Clause The Supremacy Clause of the Constitution of the United States ( Article VI, Clause 2) establishes that the Constitution, federal laws made pursuant to it, and treaties made under its authority, constitute the "supreme Law of the Land", and thu ...

(VI.2) of the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...

states that "all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the land." However, the term "treaty" has a more restricted sense in

American law The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the most important is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well as va ...

than in international law. Of the more than 16,000 international agreements entered into by the United States between 1946 and 1999, only 912 were ratified by the required two thirds of the

US Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

of the

Treaty Clause The Treaty Clause of the United States Constitution (Article II, Section 2, Clause 2) establishes the procedure for ratifying international agreements. It empowers the President as the primary negotiator of agreements between the United States a ...

of the Constitution.''Treaties and other International Agreements: the Role of the United States Senate''
(Congressional Research Service 2001). The

US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point of ...

has also limited the direct effect of ratified treaties, notably in the case of ''

Medellín v. Texas ''Medellín v. Texas'', 552 U.S. 491 (2008), was a decision of the United States Supreme Court that held that even when a treaty constitutes an international commitment, it is not binding domestic law unless it has been implemented by an act of the ...

'' (2008). Almost all treaties must be incorporated into federal law by both chambers of the

US Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washingto ...

to have effect.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Incorporation Of International Law International law legal terminology Legal doctrines and principles