International Law

International Law consists of a binding treaty or body of rules that governs the relationships between nations. The United Nations is a leading example of an entity that has created a significant amount of International Law that is currently in place. Public international law governs treaty law, law of sea and international criminal law / humanitarian law. Private international law (conflict of law) answers which jurisdiction may hear a case and which jurisdiction’s law should apply. Supranational law concerns regional law which may conflict with a national treaty and be invalidated. International trade law concerns managing the customs and rules of trade and the commercial relationships between different countries.