Substantive International Law Before National Fora

National courts pronounce regularly on international law.¹ Whether immunity is granted² or a ship in distress on the open sea may avail herself of a safe haven in an adjacent port³ or the suggested illegality of the British American Iraq campaign is put forward as a justification for disobeying military orders⁴ let alone international humanitarian law or human rights; there are few areas left where substantive international law may not have an impact. This increasingly requires national courts to determine and apply international law in various contexts as part of their national legal proceedings.