You may not need to refer to these types of materials, it will depend on the question you are trying to answer. Some key resources are linked below, more resources are available in our International Law guide.

Treaties

Treaties can be referred to by many different names:

• International conventions
• International agreements
• covenants
• final acts
• charters
• protocols
• pacts
• accords
• constitutions for international organisations

Treaties can be bilateral or multilateral and are usually only binding to the parties in the agreement.

United Nations (UN) Documents

These are documents produced by the different organs of the UN, as well as by states when interacting in and with the UN. They can include:

• resolutions from legislative bodies, such as the General Assembly, Security Council, and the Economic and Social Council,
• reports of the UN Secretary-General assess the state of the Organization and announce new work initiatives,
• cases and rulings by the International Court of Justice, the main judicial body of the UN, and
• meeting records, summaries of conferences, UN reports, treaties, maps, yearbooks and more.