Strategy for an Era of Application of International Law - Action Plan
Adopted
by the Senior Management Group and Approved by the Secretary-General,
June 2000
Download Action Plan in PDF
3. Training of Judges and Practising Lawyers
Background
Just because a national legal system contains rules which are designed to
ensure the implementation of the State's obligation sunder international law
does not mean that those obligations will be complied with. Those rules of
national law need themselves to be observed. In particular,they need to be
implemented in a manner that is consistent with the State's international obligations.
For this to occur, it is important that those who administer and apply the
law - particularly, the judiciary - and those who give advice on the application
of the law - typically, lawyers - are familiar with international law and know
how to research, understand and work in that field.
Issue
Judges and lawyers at the national level frequently display a lack of familiarity
with international law, together with a lack of facility in researching, interpreting
and applying it. As a result,international law is often misapplied and is sometimes
not applied at all.
It is, therefore, highly desirable that practising lawyers and judges receive
training in international law, so that they know how to research and interpret
international law when the occasion demands and so ensure that international
law is properly applied.
Actions
The Secretariat, Programmes,
Funds and Agencies might take steps to promote the better training of lawyers
and judges in international law. In particular they should:
Promote courses in international law
which sitting judges and practising lawyers may take on a voluntary basis;
Advocate the adoption of a qualifying
requirement for the judiciary and for practising lawyers that they have taken
a course in international law during their professional training; and
In jurisdictions where there is
a requirement that practitioners undertake continuing legal education, encourage
recognition of courses in international law as fulfilling applicable requirements
in that regard;
In pursuit of this objective,
the Secretariat, Programmes, Funds and Agencies might enlist the assistance of
international and national associations of lawyers who are active in the field
of international law (8), encouraging them to:
Organise panels at their conferences
on the topic of the implementation of international law in national law;
Invite(from a provided list) key-note
speakers from the Organization;
The Secretariat,Programmes,
Funds and Agencies should take up opportunities to address international meetings
of the judiciary whenever possible. Efforts should be made to identify further
appropriate opportunities for contacting and addressing national judiciaries
and professional lawyers associations;
In those cases in which the Organization
is itself engaged in the training of the national judiciary, basic training
in international law should be built into the programmes concerned;
Examples:
It is assumed that this is done in missions, such as MICIVIH,
which run training programmes for lawyers and the judiciary in the rule
of law, in UNDP programmes to promote access to justice and good governance
and in OHCHR's technical assistance programmesand field operations.
The Secretariat should aim to make
available to a State, upon its request, training for its national judiciary in
the implementation of specific treaties or groups of treaties which have been,
or are about to be, ratified by that State(9).
Examples:
The briefings which are organized and run for judges and
arbitrators by the International Trade Law Branch(ITLB) of OLA on the implementation
of UNCITRAL texts which have been incorporated into national legislation.
The training programmes which UNHCR runs for members of national
refugee commissions in the implementation of refugee conventions which
have been incorporated into national law.
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