Researching Treaty Sources

Last update 4/2009. Direct feedback on this page to lawlib@umn.edu.

I.	Introduction	V.	When The U.S. Is A Party To The Treaty
II.	Research Guides	VI.	Treaties Where The U.S. Is Not A Party
III.	Researching Treaties	VII.	Signatories, Ratifications, Status, Reservations
IV.	General Sources For Treaties	VIII.	Treaties By Popular Name
		IX.	Treaty Collections On The Internet

Introduction

Treaties can be referred to by a number of different names: international conventions, international agreements, covenants, final acts, charters, protocols, pacts, accords, and constitutions for international organizations. Usually these different names have no legal significance in international law. Treaties may be bilateral (two parties) or multilateral (between several parties) and a treaty is usually only binding on the parties to the agreement. An agreement "enters into force" when the terms for entry into force as specified in the agreement are met. Bilateral treaties usually enter into force when both parties agree to be bound as of a certain date. For more information on treaties, see Thomas Buergenthal, Public International Law in a Nutshell (3rd ed., St Paul, MN: West, 2002).

For a list of frequently-cited treaties and their citations, see the Law Library's guide, Frequently-Cited Treaties and Other International Instruments. If you need to research the history of a treaty, see Jonathan Pratter's guide, À la Recherche des Travaux Préparatoires: An Approach to Researching the Drafting History of International Agreements, http://www.nyulawglobal.org/globalex/Travaux_Preparatoires.htm

Research Guides

Cohen, Morris L., Robert C. Berring and Kent C. Olson. How to Find the Law (9th ed., St. Paul, MN: West, 1989). See chapter 15 "International Law" for a good detailed discussion of treaty research including treaty interpretation. [Reference Office and Reserve KF240.C538 1989].
Jacobstein, Myron J. and Roy M. Mersky. Fundamentals of Legal Research. (8th ed., Westbury, NY: Foundation Press, 2002). See "International Law" chapter for a good discussion of treaty research sources. [Reserve and Reference KF240.J32 2002].
Guide to International Legal Research (Charlottesville, VA: LEXIS Law Publishing,). [Reserve and Reference Office JX1297.G84; most current edition is on Reserve].
C. Germain, Germain 's Transnational Law Research (Ardsley-on-Hudson, N.Y.: Transnational Publications, 1991- ). [Reference Office K85.G47 1991].
J. Rehberg, "Finding Treaties and Other International Agreements," in Accidental Tourist on the New Frontier: An Introductory Guide to Global Legal Research (Rehberg & Popa eds., Littleton, CO: Rothman, 1997). [Reserve K 85 .A27 1997].
S. Thorpe, "A Guide to International Legal Bibliography," (chapter 2) in Contemporary Practice of Public International Law (Schaffer and Synder, eds., New York: Oceana, 1997). [Reserve and Reference Office KZ 1234 .C66 1997].
J. Watson, ASIL Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law: Treaties (Washington, DC: American Society of International Law, 1997) ( http://www.asil.org/resource/treaty1.htm).
Fundamentals of Treaty Research: U.S. and Non-U.S. (Electronic Resources) by Lyonette Louis-Jacques (http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/~llou/treaties.html). Links to many other guides that are available on the web.
G. Middeldorp, Conducting Research in International Public Law (http://www.uu.nl/uupublish/homerechtsgeleer/juridischebiblio/informatie/
vakgebieden/volkenrecht/conductingresear/22384main.html).
NYU Law Library, International Treaties (http://www.law.nyu.edu/library/foreign_intl/treaties.html).
Links to many other guides on the web.
Walter Gehr, The International Law of Treaties, http://www.walter.gehr.net/ [not a research guide, but an excellent introduction to international treaty law, with links to treaties and other useful web pages].
Marci Hoffman, Researching U.S. Treaties and Agreements (http://www.llrx.com/features/ustreaty.htm).

Researching Treaties

The researcher usually faces three issues when researching treaties:

locating the full-text of the treaty;
determining the status of the treaty (is it in force); and
locating current information on signatories, ratifications, and reservations.

General Sources for Treaties

There are many sources for locating a desired treaty. The internet has become an excellent source for finding the text of treaties. You may want to start your research by entering the treaty name into a good search engine like Google (http://www.google.com). To find major treaties with accurate citations, use the EISIL project (http://www.eisil.org) of the American Society of International Law. Also, see section IX below for a list of Internet sources). Listed below are some general sources where treaties are published (for bilateral or multilateral treaties).

A new (2009) source for finding major treaties is the The Flare Index to Treaties (http://ials.sas.ac.uk/treatyindex.htm). It is searchable by keyword, date, and other information, and includes links to the full text of treaties in many cases.

Official country treaty series (e.g., Canada Treaty Series). These series can be identified by using the List of Treaty Collections by the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs. Also check a country legal research guide or search MNCAT under the subject [country]--foreign relations--treaties. Official treaty series are usually slower in publication than other treaty sources and not all countries have treaty series. These series are especially important to check for bilateral treaties.
IGO treaty series, such as League of Nations Treaty Series (1919-1945) or United Nations Treaty Series (1946- ). Locate these sets on MNCAT by using the subject search treaties--collections or by checking a bibliography or publications catalog for the IGO. These sets are usually slow in publication -- the U.N. is about 10 or more years behind. An important source for multilateral treaties.
Official gazettes -- often the first official source (e.g., Bundesgesetzblatt, Part II for Germany). See J. Roberts' A Guide to Official Gazettes and Their Contents (Ref Office US-LC42.2:G289x) or do a subject search on MNCAT gazettes--[country].
Statutory compilations (chronological) such as Statutes at Large of the United States. On MNCAT, search under the country's name or check a legal research guide.
Looseleaf services (find one on the subject matter of the treaty using Legal Looseleafs in Print or a legal research guide). Try a keyword search on MNCAT with the subject of the treaty and the word "loose?" as in environmental law loose?. The frequency of updating for looseleafs varies from every week to every year to every 2-3 years. This can be a good source for recent treaties.
Electronic sources (online databases, CD-ROMS, or the Internet). To identify relevant electronic sources use database directories, catalogs, and legal research guides. Electronic sources are good for locating very recent treaties. The biggest collection of treaties on the web is the free databases in the United Nations Treaty Collection.
Periodical literature (e.g., Beijing Review and ILM). Some periodicals regularly reprint major treaties and others contain articles to which the text of a treaty being discussed might be appended. Check LegalTrac (available from the Law Library) and other periodical indexes.
8. Other sources of treaty texts include proceedings of international conferences (sometimes, the treaty is the "final act" of the conference); documents of international organizations and national government bodies such as U.S. Congress (Senate Treaty Documents); monographic subject compilations; newspapers (e.g., New York Times); governmental bodies (e.g., U.S. State Dept. or foreign consulates); and press releases.
Some treaties are separately published (not part of a set)--these can be found in MNCAT by doing a title search under the name of the treaty or the subject matter, to find compilations, add the word "treaties" to a subject search on MNCAT as in taxation, double united states treaties. You may also try other subject searches such as commercial treaties or european economic community countries commercial treaties.

When The U.S. Is A Party To The Treaty

General background
Treaties are initiated, drafted and negotiated to agreement by the Executive Branch but require two thirds approval by the Senate. The Senate refers treaties to its Foreign Relations Committee. After Senate approval, the treaty is ratified and proclaimed by the President. Executive Agreements are made with other countries by the President under the authority to conduct foreign affairs. While similar in form and effect to treaties, Executive Agreements do not require the advice and consent of the Senate. For more information on this process, see Treaties and Other International Agreements: The Role of the United States Senate: A Study [US DOCS Y4.F76/2:S. PRT.103-53] or The Making of International Agreements: Congress Confronts the Executive [KF5055.J63 1984].

Treaties are referred to by TITLE (the title is usually created from general terms relating to subject matter). A complete citation includes: title, date of signing, parties (if 3 or fewer), and references to main sources of publication. See The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation [Reserve KF245.B58x].
Forms of Publication

Until 1950, U.S. treaties appeared regularly after proclamation in Statutes at Large [Primary KF50.U6]. Pre-1950 treaties can also be found in Treaties and Other International Agreements of the United States of America, 1776-1949 (a 13 volume set commonly cited by the compilers' name: Bevans) [US DOCS S9.12/2:]. In 1950, United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (UST) [US DOCS S9.12:] became the official source for all U.S. treaties and agreements. Several volumes are published annually, each with a noncumulative subject and country index. Note that the last United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (UST) bound volume is dated 1984. U.S. treaties first appear in slip form in Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS) [US DOCS S9.10:], a set of individually paginated pamphlets, consecutively numbered. This series has a lag time of 5-6 years. Before ratification, you can check on the status of a treaty in CCH Congressional Index [current copy on Reserve KF49.C6].

After ratification, but still well before treaties appear in slip form, selected treaties (after they are cleared for publication by the Senate) are published in the Senate Treaty Document Series (Congressional Information Service) [microforms room] (formerly the Senate Executive Document Series).
Locating the Text of U.S. Treaties

If you have a complete citation, go to UST or TIAS. If the treaty is relatively recent (last 5 years) or you do not have a complete citation, see below.
1. Treaty Indexes/Finding Tools
  MNCAT subject headings: Treaties Indexes or United States Foreign relations Treaties Indexes.
  1. Treaties in Force (http://www.state.gov/s/l/treaty/treaties/2007/index.htm ) (TIF) (1950-) [U.S. S9.14:yr / current year in Reference. Office and on Reserve]. This annual publication lists and very briefly summarizes all U.S. treaties and agreements still in force, arranged by country and subject. Includes both bilateral and multilateral treaties and gives references to UST cites and TIAS numbers (if one exists). The primary use of TIF is verification of the existence of a treaty.
  2. A Guide to the United States Treaties in Force ed. by I. Kavass and A. Sprudzs, annual [Ref KZ235 .G85x. An alternative to TIF, access is by a combined subject index for both bilateral and multilateral treaties, as well as by numerical and country index.
  3. Current Treaty Index [Ref KZ235 .C87x ]. This annual cumulative index lists current treaties and agreements published in slip form in TIAS as well as those treaties without TIAS numbers.
  4. Congressional Record Index [until 1995, located at US DOCS X/a: after 1995, located at US DOCS X1.1/A 1995]. Provides a listing of treaty actions and discussion appearing in the Record under the heading "Treaties" and occasionally under the name of a particular treaty or its subject matter. Good source for legislative history of a treaty.
  5. United States Treaty Index: 1776-1990 Consolidation [Ref KZ235.U55x 1991] (13 vols). This set is supplemented by Current Treaty Index, see c. above. This is one of the best sources for recent treaty information. There is a subject, chronological, and country index. The treaties are available on microfiche, see below.
  6. Multilateral Treaties: Index and Current Status [Reference Office KZ118.B69x 1984] is one of the best sources for citations and status information for multilateral treaties. It has a vague subject and keyword index and all of the entries are arranged in chronological order. This is a good source for all multilateral treaties, even if the U.S. is not a party. There is a cumulative supplement -- although it is always a bit dated.
  7. Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary General [Most current hardcopy edition in Ref Office UN-DOCS ST/LEG/SER.E/year]. This is a good source for citations and a list of the parties to an agreement. Limited to those treaties deposited with the UN. Available to U of Minnesota library patrons in the United Nations Treaty Collection.
  8. Periodicals can be a very good source for citations to and information about treaties. Search the full-text files on both LexisNexis (Legal > Secondary Legal > Law Reviews & Journals) and Westlaw (JLR).
2. Full-text Sources
  
  MNCAT subject headings: United States Foreign relations Treaties.
  1. Treaties and Other International Acts of the United States of America (H. Miller ed., 1931) [US DOCS S9.5/1:1-8]. Has text of treaties from 1776- 1863; eight volumes; good for treaties before TS #489.
  2. Treaties, Conventions, International Acts, Protocols, and Agreements Between the U.S.A. and Other Powers (Malloy ed., v.1-2; Redmond & Trenwith eds., v.3-4). Contains text of treaties from 1776-1937; v.4 has cumulative index and chronological list of treaties [KZ235 1910x].
  3. Treaties and Other International Agreements of the United States, 1776-1949 (C. Bevans ed.) [US DOCS S9.12/2]. Supersedes Miller and Malloy; v.1-4 have the text of multilateral treaties and agreements in chronological order by date of signature; v.5-12 includes bilateral treaties and agreements in alphabetical order by country; v.13 has a cumulative country and subject index Treaty Series (TS) (#489-#812) (1908- September 1929) Contains treaties and executive agreements through 9/29.
  4. Treaty Series (TS) (#813-#994) (October 1929-1945), contains treaties only [US DOCS S9.5/1].
  5. Executive Agreement Series (EAS) (-#506) (October 1929-1945) [US DOCS S9.8].
  6. Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS) (#1501- )(1946-date) [US DOCS S9.10]. Combines and continues numbering of Treaty Series and Executive Agreement Series.
  7. Statutes at Large (1789-1950) (Stat.) Treaties were published irregularly in Statutes at Large from 1789 to 1903; with volume 47 (1931-32), international agreements were also included.
  8. United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (1950-) (U.S.T.) [US DOCS S9.12].
  9. Treaties and Other International Acts Series (T.I.A.S.) (slip treaty--later bound in U.S.T.) [US DOCS S9.10].
  10. CIS Index and microfiche [microform room]. Treaties appearing in the Senate Treaty Document Series are indexed by CIS. Access is through subject matter of the treaty, title of the treaty, as well as through the heading "Treaties and Agreements," and the treaty document number (assigned by the Senate). The index gives a cite to the CIS microfiche set where the full text of the treaty is located.
  11. International Legal Materials (1962-) [Per .I577]. Selected treaties appear in full-text, often the first and only place they are published until the treaties come out officially. ILM is also available on LexisNexis (Legal > Area of Law - By Topic > International Law > Treaties & International Agreements) from 1975 on and WESTLAW (ILM) from 1980 to present.
  12. Looseleaf Services - Prentice-Hall's Federal Tax Treaties [Tax Serv KF6306.P74] publishes tax related treaties.
  13. Hein's United States Treaties and Other International Agreements Current Service [Mfiche Room JX235.9 .H45x]. Use the United States Treaty Index [Ref KZ235.U55x 1991] and the Current Treaty Index [Ref KZ235.C87x] to locate the correct microfiche. Or use HeinOnline. This set is one of the best sources for recent treaties.
  14. Consolidated Treaties and International Agreements (CTIA) [JX235.9.U95x]. This set is a continuation of the 231 volume set Consolidated Treaty Series [KZ120 .P35x 1969] which covers 1648-1918. The continuation set covers from January 1990 to present (about a 6 month lag).
  15. Both LexisNexis and WESTLAW have treaties on various topics. Treaties can be located in the USTREATIES; or CMB-TREATIES databases on WESTLAW and in Legal > Area of Law - By Topic > International Law > Treaties & International Agreements on LexisNexis. Both of these systems have major trade agreements (GATT and NAFTA), Environmental Law Reporter, International Economic Law Documents, and International Environmental Law Documents, and tax treaties.
  16. Senate and House Treaty Documents (104th Congress on) http://www.gpoaccess.gov/serialset/cdocuments/index.html.
  17. Collections of multilateral treaties accessible full-text through the Internet. See section IX below for a list of treaty collections on the web. Not all of the listed collections contain treaties where the U.S. is a party.
3. Verification and Updating of U.S. treaties
  1. Shepard's United States Citations [Ref KF 101.2 .S54] -- pre-1950 treaties are listed by Statutes at Large number. After 1950 they are listed by UST or TIAS number. Note: only federal cases cited. For state decisions, see state digests or use LexisNexis and WESTLAW.
  2. United States Code Service [Primary KF62 1972.L38] -- unnumbered volume "Notes to Uncodified Laws and Treaties."
  3. Use WESTLAW and LexisNexis as a citator.
  4. Current Treaty Actions are also available on the web at http://www.state.gov/s/l/treaty/c3428.htm. See also Legislative Activities: Treaties section of the Senate web site. This site contains information about treaties received, approved, etc. (http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/legislative/d_three_sections_with_teasers/treaties.htm).
  5. For status of pending treaty, see CCH's Congressional Index (Reserve KF49.C6).
  6. If all else fails, call the Department of State's Treaty Files Information at (202) 647-1345 for up-to-date treaty information.
4. Treaty Interpretation (U.S. background)
  1. Use legislative history tools, such as CIS Indexes (available in microforms room). See also LexisNexis Congressional available on the web to U of M library users at http://lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/cong.cgi. Senate, House and Treaty Documents from the 104th to the current Congress can be accessed through the web at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/serialset/cdocuments/index.html.
  2. Legislative Activities: Treaties (http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/legislative/d_three_sections_with_teasers/treaties.htm). This page provides or links to the following information: a list of treaties received from the President, treaties on the Executive Calendar, treaties approved by the Senate, and listings of other recent treaty status actions, including treaties that were rejected by the Senate or withdrawn by the President, during the current Congress.
  3. Some research into treaty origins can be done on LexisNexis and Westlaw; look for legislative history databases.

Treaties Where The U.S. Is Not A Party

A. Bilateral Treaties
MNCAT subject heading: [country] foreign relations treaties.

The treaty series, statutory compilation, or official gazette of one of the country parties.

International Legal Materials (for major treaties).

Use World Treaty Index (P. Rohn ed. 1983) [KZ173 .R64 1983] or the United Nations Treaty Series' Index (about 10 years behind) for a citation. The full text might be available in UNTS. See item 2 under section IV above.

Compilations of documents from an nternational organization may provide information.

International yearbooks (e.g. African Yearbook of International Law) or other international law periodicals. For more yearbooks and related periodicals, use subject searches on MNCAT international law periodicals or international law [geographic area or country] periodicals.

Some bilateral treaties can be accessed on the web. See some of the guides listed above in section II. Research Guides for links to these collections on the web.

Phone calls to interested parties (organizations), embassies, Dept. of State, Office of Treaty Affairs or the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs, Treaty Section.

B. Multilateral Treaties 1. Indexes
MNCAT subject heading: Treaties--Indexes.

Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary General [Most current hardcopy edition in Mfiche Room UN-DOCS ST/LEG/SER.E/year]. This is a good source for citations and a list of the parties to an agreement. Limited to those treaties deposited with the UN. U of Minnesota library patrons can access this via the United Nations Treaty Collection.

World Treaty Index (P. Rohn ed. 1983) [KZ173 .R64 1983].

Multilateral Treaties: Index and Current Status [Reference Office KZ118.B69x 1984] is one of the best sources for citations and status information for multilateral treaties. It has a vague subject and keyword index and all of the entries are arranged in chronological order. This is a good source for all multilateral treaties, even if the U.S. is not a party. There is a cumulative supplement -- although it is always a bit dated.

Christian L. Wiktor, Multilateral Treaty Calendar = Repertoire des Traites Multilateraux, 1648-1995 [Reference Office KZ 118 .M85 1998] .

Index to the United Nations Treaty Series [ KZ172 .T74]

2. Full-Text Sources

MNCAT subject headings: [name of individual treaty] or treaties collections.

Consolidated Treaty Series (C.T.S.) 1648-1920 [KZ120 .P35x 1969].
League of Nations Treaty Series (L.N.T.S.) 1920-1944 [KZ170.5 .T74].
United Nations Treaty Series (U.N.T.S.) 1944-date [KZ172 .T74]. U of Minnesota library patrons can access this electronically via the United Nations Treaty Collection.
International Legal Materials (I.L.M.) (1962-date) [Per.I577].
Periodicals or looseleaf services.
Country treaty series or official gazettes.
Subject compilations, such as Basic Documents in International Law and World Order or Basic Documents of International Economic Law, Intellectual Property Laws and Treaties, etc.
LexisNexis, WESTLAW, and the Internet (see section IX below for a list of Internet sources).

Signatories, Ratifications, Status, Reservations

MNCAT subject headings: treaties--ratification or treaties--reservations.

This can be the most difficult information to locate for many treaties. The best place to start is with the treaty indexes such as Treaties in Force, Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary General, or Multilateral Treaties: Index and Current Status.
Depending on the topic of the treaty or agreement, consult relevant looseleafs, periodicals, or series on the topic. For example, for human rights treaties, see Human Rights: Status of International Instruments; for treaties on copyright and trademark, see the journal Industrial Property and Copyright; for Hague conventions, see Netherlands International Law Review. Other more general sources include UN Chronicle, the Dept. of State Dispatch, and newspapers. These are just a few of the many sources available.
For the most up-to-date information, call the U.S. State Department's Treaty Affairs Office (has separate numbers for U.S. treaties, U.N. treaties, and foreign/non-U.S. treaties), the United Nations treaty information office (has separate numbers for bilateral and multilateral treaties); phone numbers can be obtained from directories or the Reference Office of the Law Library.
The Internet is often a good source for status information. Some of the useful sites are listed below. Again, this is only a sampling of what is out there on the Web.

U.N. Treaty Database
http://treaties.un.org
Environmental Treaties and Resource Indicators
http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/entri/index.jsp

Council of Europe, European Treaties
http://conventions.coe.int

Select Documents on International Affairs Series
http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/dfat/seldoc

Hague Conventions on Private International Law (Status List)
http://hcch.e-vision.nl/index_en.php?

WIPO Treaties
http://www.wipo.int/treaties/en/

BASE PACTE - Traités et accords de la France (in French, but provides citations to U.N.T.S. and other sources)
http://www.doc.diplomatie.gouv.fr/pacte

Treaties By Popular Name

Shepard's Acts and Cases by Popular Name [Reference Office and Reference KF 90 .S52 1992].
Treaties and Other International Agreements of the United States of America, 1776-1949 (Bevans') index [US DOC S9.12/2].
Online periodicals (full-text and indexes).
International Legal Materials.

Treaty Collections on the Internet

Listed below are some (not all) of the treaty collections available on the Internet. Not all of these collections contain treaties where the U.S. is a party.

Avalon Project (Yale Law School)
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/avalon.htm
Good historical collection.
Australian Treaties Library
http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/dfat/

BASE PACTE - Traités et accords de la France (in French, but provides citations to U.N.T.S. and other sources; includes multilateral treaties and bilateral treaties to which France is a party)
http://www.doc.diplomatie.gouv.fr/pacte

Council of Europe, European Treaties
http://conventions.coe.int

European Union Treaties
http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/en/treaties/index.htm

Latin American Tax Treaties
http://www.natlaw.com/treaties/taxtreat.htm

Hague Conventions on Private International Law
http://www.hcch.net/index_en.php http://www.hcch.net/index_en.php

International Humanitarian Law Database
http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/iwpList2/Info_resources:IHL_databases

International Labor Treaties
http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/index.htm

International Treaties (NYU)
http://www.law.nyu.edu/library/foreign_intl/treaties.html

Multilaterals Project
http://fletcher.tufts.edu/multilaterals.html
Good coverage of multilateral treaties on a variety of topics.

Organization of American States
http://www.oas.org (select Documents)

Private International Law Database (U.S. Dept. of State)
http://www.state.gov/www/global/legal_affairs/private_intl_law.html
(currently not updated)

United Nations Treaty Collection
http://treaties.un.org

University of Minnesota Human Rights Library
http://www.umn.edu/humanrts

Washburn University International and Multilateral Treaties
http://www.washlaw.edu/forint/alpha/t/treaties.html

WIPO Treaties
http://www.wipo.int/treaties/en/

Links verified 7/23/08 Updated 12/07.