The textbook provides a broad-brush overview of international law and its
functioning. Its key legal institutions are explained as part of the international
social and political process. They are compared with domestic legal
systems, highlighting both differences and similarities, while emphasizing
the crucial relevance of domestic implementation of international rules.
In addition to the structural aspects of international law, the principal bodies
of international substantive rules of conduct are illustrated, with special
focus on the law governing the use of force, international criminal law and
justice, investment and trade law, the law of the sea, human rights law, environmental
law, jurisdictional immunities, and migration law.
Throughout the text, international organizations, with particular attention
to the UN, are presented as the forum for international dialogue, with international
law serving as its language.