Study Plan (Past Questions from 2006-2016)

Primary Book: Malcolm N. Shaw

Chapters: 1-3, 5-6, 8-9, 11, 13-14, 16-20 (Total 15 Chapters)

 Nature, Origin and Basis of International Law. – Chapter 1 & 2

a) The Emergence of International Law
 “International Law is a Law regulating the rights and duties of states
and creating no rights and imposing no duties on individuals”. Do you
agree with this statement? Why or why not? Argue. (2006)
 “In the absence of any form of International Legislature of Democratic
States, International Law was said to be based upon the consent of the
states upon their individual acceptance of its principles and rules.
(2007)
 Give such a definition of International Law which could cover all the
modern trends in it. (2010)
 International Law is a product of centuries – elaborate the statement in
view of the scientific development and codification of the law. (2013)
 What is relationship between Positive Law Theory, Natural Law
Theory and Internationals Law? How these theories contributed in the
evolution of International Law? (2015)
 Define International Law. Discuss its nature and scope. To what extent
it is relevant and effective in the modern times? (2016)
b) Early European Authors
 John Austin says, “International Law is not a real Law, but a positive
international morality.” Do you agree with him? Give arguments in
support of your answer. (2008)
c) The Nation-State System
d) The Enforcement of International Law
e) The Effectiveness of International Law
f) The Weakness of International Law
g) The Juridical Basis of International law
h) The Future of International law
i) Material Sources of International Law.

 Relation between International Law and State Law.- Chapter 3

a) Article 38 of the Statute of International Court of Justice and Primary
Sources of International Law
 How far do you agree that International Law is based on „Common
Consent‟ of states? Evaluate the importance of customary law and
treaty law as binding in this regard. (2009)
 “As the basis of the Law of Nations is the common consent of the
member states of the Family of Nations, it is evident there must exist
as many sources of international law as there are facts through which
 such common consent can possibly come into existence”
(Oppenheim). Discuss. (2011)
 While customs form the major part of International Law it is
conventions that make it more authentic and applicable. Discuss.
(2013)
 “When all has been said it will be found that consent remains firmly
the basis of international law, and there are as many, and only as
many, sources of international law as there are ways whereby the
consent of states can be expressed”? Discuss. (2014)
 Explain the sources of International Law in the light of Article 38(1) of
the Statute of International Court of Justice. (2015)
 What are the material sources of International Law? Discuss any two
of them in detail with necessary examples. (2016)
b) Subsidiary Sources of International Law
c) International Soft Law

 State in General and Recognition- Chapter 5 & 8

a) Personality and Statehood in International Law
b) The Subjects of International Law
 Briefly and precisely define subjects of international law. Do you
agree that individuals can be considered as subjects of international
law? Give appropriate examples in this regard. (2008)
 Define the term „International Personality‟ and discuss the rights of
various entities as international legal persons. (2009)
 What is meant by „Subjects of International Law‟? Justify Individuals
as the subject of International Law by giving appropriate examples.
 “International Law is primarily concerned with the rights, duties and
interests of states.” Examine this statement with reference to the place
of individuals and non-state entities in International Law. (2011)
 “The practice of United Nations Organization show that while the
principle of self-determination is agreed upon, neither the scope of its
application nor the method of decolonization has been settled.”
Discuss. (2011)
 Write short note on the following:
i. Protectorate. (2012)
 States continue to be the principal subjects of international legal
relations but non-state entities also exert a great deal of influence on
the legal system. Examine the statement with reference to rights and
duties of international organizations under law. (2013)
 “The case law of the international court of justice and the practice of
the United Nations show that while the principle of self-determination
is agreed upon, neither the scope of its application nor the method of
decolonization has been settled”. Discuss. (2014)
 Explain the rules which govern how an insurgency movement can
become a subject of International Law. (2015)
 c) Recognition of State and Government in International Law
 What is the duty of other states in case of internal revolt in an
independent state? Can they help the rebels? Under what circumstance
recognition may be accorded to the rebels? (2006)
 What is meant by Recognition of States as a member of family of
nations? State the different modes of such recognition. (2007)
 Discuss recognition. Differentiate between de-jure and de-facto
recognition. What are the disabilities of an unrecognized state? (2008)
 Define Recognition. Differentiate between De facto and De jure
recognition. (2010)
 “The subject of recognition is one of the most difficult branches of
international law, not merely from the point of view of exposition of
principles, but also intrinsically by reason of many difficulties which
arise in practice.” Discuss. (2011)
 “Non-recognition of a government can be amounted to denying the
recognition of the state itself as it is the governments that do
international business on behalf of the states.” Argue in affirmative
this statement with particular reference to the Constitutive Theory of
Recognition. (2012)
 Define Recognition and explain its kinds. Also point out the difference
between recognition of states and governments. (2013)
 What is the role of state recognition in the commencement of existence
of a state? What are the rules that govern the issues that arise out of a
state ceasing to exist? (2015)
 What is recognition? Discuss Dejure and Defacto recognitions. Also
explain the constitutive and declaratory theories of recognition.
Discuss the disabilities of unrecognized states. (2016)

d) Recognition of State and Government in National Law

 The Law and Practice as to Treaties- Chapter 16

a) The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties
 State and discuss in brief the various steps mentioned by Starke
in the creation of legal obligation by a treaty. (2007)
 Coercion against a state renders a treaty invalid. Discuss main
features of the principles. Also elaborate TWO other methods
of rendering invalid the consent of a state to be bound by a
treaty. (2007)
 What are the various kinds of treaties in International Law?
Explain the laws about formation, interpretation and
termination of treaties. (2012)
 „Treaties are known by a variety of differing names, ranging
from Conventions, International Agreements, Pacts, General
Acts, and Charters Through to Statutes, Declarations and
 conventions‟. Discuss it in the light of laws of its formation,
interpretation and termination.‟ (2015)

 The Settlement of International Disputes- Chapter 18

 Discuss amicable means for the settlement of international disputes.
(2008)
 Discuss in detail amicable means for settlement of international disputes.
(2010)
b) Negotiation
c) Mediation and Good Offices
d) Inquiry and Settlement by the United Nations
e) Conciliation
f) Arbitration
g) The International Court of Justice
 Describe the functions of a prize court. What law does it administer?
(2006)
 Write short note on:
i. International Court of Justice. (2007)
 Write short note on the following:
i. Prize Court. (2012)
 Explain the structure and powers of the International Court of Justice
and assess the importance of the principles laid down in judicial
decisions of leading cases as precedents for states. (2013)

 International Humanitarian Law- Chapter 19

a) International and Non-International Armed Conflicts
 “Whatever the morality of intervention, states have no right under
international law to intervene on the territory of other states in order to
prevent alleged crimes against humanity or to uphold human rights
norms.” Discuss.
 Explain with reference to the relevant articles of the UN charter that
whether the world body is authorized to intervene in the domestic
jurisdiction of its member states? (2012)
b) Non-International Armed Conflict
c) ‘Combatant’ and ‘Protected Persons’
d) Protection of Wounded, Sick and Ship-Wrecked Persons, POWs,
Civilians:
 Give an account of the efforts of international community to protect
the civilian population from the effects of war. (2010)
e) Limitations on the Conduct of War
f) Limits on the Choice of Methods and Means of Warfare.

 The Use of Force- Chapter 19

a) The Law before the UN Charter
b) The Law after the Charter
 a. Does the customary International Law grant the right to use force to a
state in response to a terrorist attack on it? Substantiate your answer by
arguing from Article 51 and Paragraph 4 of the Article 2 of the UN
Charter and other recent examples in this regard. (2012)
c) The Collective Use of Force
d) The Right of Self-Defense.

 International Institutions- Chapter 20

 What is „veto‟? How, when and by whom it is used? (2007)
 Keeping in view the objectives of the charter seeking to establish a
mechanism of peace and collective security, how far has the United Nations
succeeding in confronting the challenges of a global international order?
(2009)
 “All the major issues on voting in the Security Council are now satisfactorily
resolved. The real problem today is about the composition of the Security
Council.” Discuss. (2011)
 Elucidate and justify: “The United Nations in spite of its imperfections is the
only organization that can save humanity from disaster and complete
annihilation.” (2011)
 What is „veto‟? How, when and by whom it is used? What consequences
Pakistan had to face in the past because of its use by a former superpower?
(2012)
 Keeping in view the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). What can
be a reform agenda in your opinion for making the UN more effective? (2013)
 “All the major issues on voting in the Security Council are now satisfactorily
resolved. The real problem today is about the composition of the Security
Council”. Discuss. (2014)
 “The office of the Secretary General of the United Nations is certainly the
most important and visible post in international multilateral diplomacy but it
has been called the most impossible job in the world because he faces
complex and contradictory pressures in the performance of his duties”.
Discuss. (2014)
 To what extent could the constitution and practice of the International Labor
Organization serve as a useful model for other specialized international
organizations? (2014)

 State Territorial Sovereignty- Chapter 9

 Write short note on:
i. International Boundaries. (2007)
 Territory is undoubtedly the basic characteristic of a state as well as the most
widely accepted and understood- elaborate with reference to the exclusive
rights of states on land and air territory. (2009)
 Discuss various modes of acquisition of territorial sovereignty by the states
acknowledged in International Law. (2010)
 Lord Curzon once said, “Frontiers are indeed the razor‟s edge on which hang
suspended the modern issues of war or peace, of life or death to nations.”
 Explain in this light the various modes of acquisition of territory by a state.
(2012)

 State Responsibility- Chapter 14

 State Jurisdiction- Chapter 11

 Discuss the extent to which a state can claim jurisdiction over the high
seas in war and peace. Is an appropriation by a state of the underwater
soil allowed in international law? (2006)
 Explain the various modes of acquiring and losing NATIONALITY.
What is Double Nationality and Statelessness? (2007)
i. Write short note on:
 Extradition. (2007)
 Give a precise definition of extradition. Write a comprehensive essay
on extradition by covering all its aspects. (2008)
 Define „State Jurisdiction‟ and explain how domestic jurisdiction of a
state can be limited and reduced in extent by principles of International
law. (2009)
 Write short note on the following:
i. Extradition. (2012)
 Write short note on the following:
i. Double Nationality. (2012)
 What is meant by State Jurisdiction? How a neutral state differs from a
neutralized state? Explain the rights and duties of neutral and the
belligerent states during war. (2016)

 Succession to Rights and Obligations- Chapter 17

 The State and the Individual- Chapter 5

 The State and the Economic Interest

 Diplomatic Envoys, Counsels and other Representatives- Chapter 13

 Discuss the liability of the following:
a) The ambassador of the Republic of Brondasia in Islamabad murders
a Pakistani out of sudden provocation.
b) The wife of the Brondasian ambassador bought cosmetics worth
Rs.1000,000 from a local departmental store, refused to pay and went
away to her embassy.
c) A Pakistani friend of the Brondasian ambassador has murdered a
Brondasian employee of the embassy. (2006)
 A, a Pakistani citizen working in the embassy of a foreign country in
Islamabad, has committed an offence against another Pakistani citizen.
The Pakistani police want to arrest such person. However, the
ambassador is refusing to handover the accused to the police with the
 plea that the accused has a diplomatic immunity. Do you agree to the
plea of the ambassador? Why or why not? (2006)
 Differentiate between territorial and extra-territorial asylum. Under
which circumstances an Embassy or Consulate can offer asylum to a
fugitive/offender of the territorial state? (2008)
 Describe the importance of Diplomacy in inter-state relations and
discuss the concept of Diplomatic Immunity of property and persons.
(2009)
 Define Diplomatic Envoy. Give a short account of the functions,
privileges and immunities of the diplomatic envoys accredited to other
states. (2011)
 What is difference between immunities and privileges of diplomats?
What is its place (20) in International Law? How it effect the functions
and responsibilities of the diplomats? (2015)
 Write note on the following:
i. Territorial and Extra-Territorial Asylum. (2016)

 War, Armed Conflicts and other Hostilities- Chapter 19

 Neutrality
 Write short note on:
i. Neutrality. (2007)
 Discuss the concept of neutralization. How is it done? Explain the Rights,
Duties and Guarantees given to a neutralized state. (2010)
 Cases:
 Write a note on any TWO of the following cases, discussing brief facts and
important points of law:
i. Corfu Channel Case
ii. The Rainbow Warrior Case
iii. The Nottebohm Case (2015)
 Write notes on the following:
i. Lotus Case
ii. Scotia Case (2016)
 Important Cases:
i. Nicaragua Case
ii. North Sea Continental Shelf Case
iii. Anglo-Norwegian Fisheries Case
iv. Nuclear Tests Case
v. Aaland Islands Case
 The Law of the Sea- Chapter 11
 Define high-seas. Explain the concept of freedom of high seas along with
restrictions over it. (2008)- The Law of Seas.
  Write short note on the following:
i. Continental Shelf. (2012)
 Why is the third UN convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS-III)
considered a vast diplomatic and legal undertaking and what has made it
different to the earlier efforts on the subject? (2013)
 “Whatever are the generally accepted rules governing the outer limit of the
territorial limit of the territorial sea this issue, and others like it, will be
settled in many cases on the basis of the principles of acquiescence and
opposability”. Discuss. (2014)
 ….the assumption that the “genuine link” formula, invented for dealing
with people, is capable of immediate application to ships….smacks of a
disappointing naiveté. (2014)
 What is meant by “Freedom of High Seas”? Discuss certain restrictions on
it by International Law, including the right of Hot Pursuit by the ships of a
coastal state on the High Seas. (2016)
The International Protection of Human Rights- Chapter 6
 Write short note on:
 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (2007)
 How far has the United Nations succeeding in developing a
comprehensive system of Human Rights Protections? Can emphasis on
social justice and Human Rights lead to a stable international order?
(2009)- International Protection of Human Rights.
 Write short note on the following:
i. Universal Declaration of Human Rights. (2012)