Introduction to International Human Rights Research

Prepared for presentation on 27 September 2007 and 9 October 2007 to Professor Bridget Arimond's class on Human Rights Advocacy by Irene Berkey, Foreign and International Law Librarian (i-berkey@law.northwestern.edu).

Substantive Introduction:

Buergenthal, Thomas, et al., International Human Rights in a Nutshell (3rd ed., 2002)
I,MON K 3240.4 .B84 2002 ON RESERVE

Research Guides:

ASIL Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law: Human Rights, by Marci Hoffman
Note: The ASIL Guide includes other areas of interest, such as "International Criminal Law."
Law library's website, under International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, section on "Human Rights Research Guides."
Law Library's web site, under International Criminal Law/War Crimes/Genocide, section "Research Guides."
United Nations Documentation: Research Guide. Section on Human Rights (United Nations Dag Hammarskjold Library)
University of Minnesota Human Rights Library, sections on " Bibliographies and Research Guides" and "Human Rights Topic Guides"

Citation and Abbreviations Guides:

Identifying Abbreviations and Acronyms: International and Foreign.
Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations - Abbreviations for "English language legal publications, from the British Isles, the Commonwealth and the United States, including those covering international and comparative law. A wide selection of major foreign language law publications is also included."
The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation, 18th ed. Harvard Law Review Association, 2005.
R,REF KF 246 .B55 (ON RESERVE)
Guide to Foreign and International Legal Citation. Journal of International Law and Politics, New York University, 2006. The Guide is also available for download via a link on this page.
I,REF K 89 .G85 2006
"The Inter-American Citator: A Guide to Uniform Citation of Inter-American Sources for Writers and Practitioners." Compiled by the editors of the University of Miami Inter-American Law Review under the direction of Kristen Broyles, 37 University of Miami Inter-American Law Review 339 (2005-2006). Available in HeinOnline
I,PER K 25 .N6785

Identifying Official Hard Copy Sources for Treaties:

Frequently-Cited Treaties and Other International Instruments (University of Minnesota law library). - Provides citations to official hard copy sources.
EISIL: Electronic Information System for International Law, under the "more information" link for a document (see below).

Electronic Full-Text Sources:

EISIL: Electronic Information System for International Law - Authenticated full-text of primary and other materials. See especially section for International Human Rights. Note: this database links to free resources only. It does not link to the United Nations Treaty Collection, which is a fee-paid resource. However, EISIL can be used to obtain a citation to U.N.T.S. (United Nations Treaty Series). Click on the "more information" link for a document; the "legal citation" provides the U.N.T.S. citation (as well as citations to other official print sources) when available.
HeinOnline
- Full-text PDF backfiles of law journals. Section for "International and Non-U.S. Law Journals" includes International Legal Materials (I.L.M.)
- "Treaties and Agreements Library," which includes the following sources for U.S. treaties: United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (U.S.T.); Treaties and International Acts Series (T.I.A.S.); KAV agreements; International Legal Materials (I.L.M.). Note: of these titles, the library has the following in hard copy: U.S.T. (Int 83 1952-), T.I.A.S. ( Int 83 1952a-), and I.L.M. (I,REF JX 68 .I5). It has KAV agreements in microfiche (M,MFC JX 231 .U54).
- "Foreign and International Law Resources Database," which includes the following: international yearbooks and periodicals; U.S. law digests; international tribunals/judicial decisions; other significant works related to foreign and international law.

United Nations Treaties and Documents:

U.N. Treaties

United Nations Treaty Series
Int 82 U58 (4th floor)
United Nations Treaty Collection - International agreements published in the United Nations Treaty Series (U.N.T.S.) in PDF. Section on Status of Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary-General can be used to find UNTS citation and links to treaty text.

U. N. Documents

See Bluebook 18th ed. (Rule 21.7) "United Nations Sources," which states: "The Official Record is the preferred source for citations, but documents drawn from the U.N. Website are acceptable." For resolutions (Rule 21.7.2), the Bluebook states: "It is proper to cite to either the Official Record or to the online version."

[However, note that the "Official Record" version of resolutions can also be found on the United Nations website.]

General Assembly Official Records (GAOR) (1946-1990) - Int 783 O32
Security Council Official Records (SCOR) (1946-1985) - Int 784 O32
U. N. Documents 1986-1997 in microfiche; contact Foreign & International Law Librarian.
Selected U.N. Resources and Research Tools: Overview and Search Tips for Legal Research. By Wiltrud Harms (GlobaLex).
United Nations Official Document System (ODS) - Documents 1992- in PDF.
A "simple search" for a resolution will search only the UN documentation database, which contains the preliminary version only of resolutions.
For final version of resolutions, must do "advanced search." However, this will retrieve PDF of official records supplement, but will not include citation. For complete citation information to official records supplement, must use UNBISnet (see below).
UN Documentation Centre - Lists of resolutions on first page is a convenience, if using Bluebook "UN website" option--has preliminary version only.
UNBISnet - For resolutions, search (browse) by document symbol; "search results" list often includes session, supplement number, and document symbol of the supplement (required by Bluebook if using "official record" source for resolutions) and it will often retrieve the resolution as found in the official records supplement.
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

International Courts and Tribunals

Law library website, especially the following:

Hard copy reports of human rights and international criminal courts--selected:

The Tokyo Major War Crimes Trial
I,MON KZ 1181 .J57 1998
Nuremburg trial material
Int 6156 (etc.) (several sets)
Inter-American Court of Human Rights
I,MON KDZ A52I58 (etc.); annual report is at N,KAA KDZ 579 .I58A7337
Inter-American Commission of Human Rights. Annual Report
N,KAA JC 599 A45I58
European Court of Human Rights
N,EAA KJC 5132 .A52E88 (etc.)
International Tribunal for Rwanda
I,MON KZ 1201 .A2I58 1999
International Tribunal for Yugoslavia
I,MON K 5301 .A495 .J83 1999 (etc.)
Judicial Reports / International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia = Recueils judiciaires / Tribunal pénal international pour l'ex-Yougoslavie
(Kluwer Law International, 1999-)
I,MON K 5301 .A47J83
Annotated Leading Cases of International Criminal Tribunals
I,MON KZ 1190 1999 vols. 1-8
International Criminal Court
I,MON KZ 6311 .A87
Global War Crimes Tribunal Collection
I,MON KZ 1168.5 .G56 1997
International Human Rights Reports
I, MON K 3239.23 .I58

Case Law Databases and Finding Guides:

HUDOC database. Access to the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, the European Commission of Human Rights, and the Committee of Ministers.
HuriSearch portal . HURIDOCS web site.
Interights. International Centre for the Legal Protection of Human Rights. Includes Commonwealth and International Human Rights Case Law Databases.
International Humanitarian Law (IHL). International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Includes ICRC databases on international humanitarian law.
International Law in Domestic Courts A searchable database of "domestic cases in international law from over 60 jurisdictions."
Refugee Caselaw Site (The University of Michigan Law School). A searchable database of selected recent decisions from national courts that interpret the legal definition of a "refugee."
University of Minnesota Human Rights Library: Search Options
WorldLII International Courts and Tribunals Project. The ICT project "aims to provide a comprehensive search facility for final decisions of all international and multi-national courts and tribunals, whether global or regional."

Finding Print (hardcopy) Materials in the Library:

Browsing:

Books about the international protection of human rights in a global context or the human rights situation in countries in more than one region of the world are usually shelved in the "location" I,MON (3rd floor). Example of a location symbol and call number:

I,MON K 3240 .B34 2004 (The Role of Human Rights in Foreign Policy).
Many books on human rights will be found nearby.

Books about the protection of human rights or the human rights situation in a particular country or region are shelved with that country or region. These areas are also on the 3rd floor. Examples:

N,EAA KJC 5132 .F86 2001 (Fundamental Rights in Europe...)
N,IAA JC 599 .A36C85 2002 (Cultural Transformation and Human Rights in Africa)
N,HCP JC 599 .C6R43 2004 (Realms of Freedom in Modern China)

Books about the philosophy of rights are likely to be shelved in MON (the Anglo-American and general collection), as are books on human rights in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

Within these broad shelving areas, materials relevant to human rights may be found under many different call numbers--not only for "law," but also for subjects such as political science, criminology, and business. It is essential to use NUcat (see below).

For a geographical approach, see the Human Rights Browsing chart.

Periodicals that tend to include articles on these subjects are shelved in I,PER (2nd floor), which incorporates periodicals on international, comparative, and foreign law, arranged (generally speaking) in alphabetical order by title. Articles on human rights are also published in journals shelved in PER (Anglo-American and general periodicals)(2nd floor). It is essential to use periodical indexes or databases (see below) to identify articles. To ascertain the location symbol and call number for a periodical, do a "title" or "journal title" search in NUcat. The NUcat record will also provide a link to electronic sources for the journal, if available.

[Note: some older foreign law material is in closed shelving, and must be requested at the Circulation Desk.]

Using NUcat to Identify Books and Periodicals:

"Guided Search"
- Keyword search can lead to Contents notes (chapter headings)
- Keyword search can lead to Subject Headings.
"Subject" search (must use Library of Congress subject headings)

Selected LC subject headings:
Human rights
Humanitarian law
Crimes against humanity
Criminal jurisdiction
Criminal liability (international law)
Criminal procedure (international law)
Genocide
International criminal courts
International offenses
War crimes
NUcat Searching Tips

NOTE: NUcat is used to determine if the library system owns a particular periodical, but it is not used to identify periodical articles. For periodical articles, use a periodical index/database (see below).

Indexes/Databases for Periodical Articles--Law

LegalTrac
In print, Current Law Index
R,REF K 33 .C87
On Westlaw as Legal Resource Index (LRI)
On LexisNexis as Legal Resource Index (LGLIND)
Index to Legal Periodicals and Books
R,REF K 33 .I5342
On Westlaw (ILP)
Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals
I,REF K 33 .I529
Legal Journals Index (on Westlaw; database identifier LJI). Indexes "legal journals published in the United Kingdom and Europe as well as journals covering topics pertaining to the laws of the European Community and its member states."
RAVE
An index to recent (1995-) articles and decisions on public international law and European law.
Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International law, Heidelberg, Public International Law
Books and since (1996-) articles held by the library. Also, in print,
Public International Law: A Current Bibliography of Books and Articles
I,REF JX 3091 .P82

Indexes/Databases for Periodical Articles--Non-Law (Selective List)

Contemporary Women's Issues
Family and Society Studies Worldwide
Gender Studies Database
International Bibliography of the Social Sciences
PAIS International
Sociological Abstracts
For additional indexes, see Northwestern University Electronic Resources.
Explore such areas as Cultural and Gender Studies, History, International Studies, Social Sciences (e.g. Anthropology, Political Science, Psychology)

Indexes/Databases for Selected Regions:

Bibliography of Asia Studies
Handbook of Latin American Studies
HAPI Online
Online version of Hispanic American Periodical Index

Religious Legal Systems--Indexes/Databases:

ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
RAMBI (Index of Articles in Jewish Studies)
The Jewish National and University Library.
Index Islamicus

		Instructional Services Recent Instructional Materials Introduction to International Human Rights Research
	Course Support
	Course Support

	Past Exams Course Reserves Course Outlines Using Blackboard CALI Online Lessons Using EndNote Instructional Services LLM Program Courses for Credit Recent Instructional Materials Comparative Corporate Governance United States Treaty Research Comparative Intellectual Property Law Comparative Securities Regulation Introduction to International Human Rights Research International and Comparative Labor Law	Introduction to International Human Rights Research Prepared for presentation on 27 September 2007 and 9 October 2007 to Professor Bridget Arimond's class on Human Rights Advocacy by Irene Berkey, Foreign and International Law Librarian (i-berkey@law.northwestern.edu). Substantive Introduction: Buergenthal, Thomas, et al., International Human Rights in a Nutshell (3rd ed., 2002) I,MON K 3240.4 .B84 2002 ON RESERVE Research Guides: ASIL Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law: Human Rights, by Marci Hoffman Note: The ASIL Guide includes other areas of interest, such as "International Criminal Law." Law library's website, under International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, section on "Human Rights Research Guides." Law Library's web site, under International Criminal Law/War Crimes/Genocide, section "Research Guides." United Nations Documentation: Research Guide. Section on Human Rights (United Nations Dag Hammarskjold Library) University of Minnesota Human Rights Library, sections on " Bibliographies and Research Guides" and "Human Rights Topic Guides" Citation and Abbreviations Guides: Identifying Abbreviations and Acronyms: International and Foreign. Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations - Abbreviations for "English language legal publications, from the British Isles, the Commonwealth and the United States, including those covering international and comparative law. A wide selection of major foreign language law publications is also included." The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation, 18th ed. Harvard Law Review Association, 2005. R,REF KF 246 .B55 (ON RESERVE) Guide to Foreign and International Legal Citation. Journal of International Law and Politics, New York University, 2006. The Guide is also available for download via a link on this page. I,REF K 89 .G85 2006 "The Inter-American Citator: A Guide to Uniform Citation of Inter-American Sources for Writers and Practitioners." Compiled by the editors of the University of Miami Inter-American Law Review under the direction of Kristen Broyles, 37 University of Miami Inter-American Law Review 339 (2005-2006). Available in HeinOnline I,PER K 25 .N6785 Identifying Official Hard Copy Sources for Treaties: Frequently-Cited Treaties and Other International Instruments (University of Minnesota law library). - Provides citations to official hard copy sources. EISIL: Electronic Information System for International Law, under the "more information" link for a document (see below). Electronic Full-Text Sources: EISIL: Electronic Information System for International Law - Authenticated full-text of primary and other materials. See especially section for International Human Rights. Note: this database links to free resources only. It does not link to the United Nations Treaty Collection, which is a fee-paid resource. However, EISIL can be used to obtain a citation to U.N.T.S. (United Nations Treaty Series). Click on the "more information" link for a document; the "legal citation" provides the U.N.T.S. citation (as well as citations to other official print sources) when available. HeinOnline Full-text PDF backfiles of law journals. Section for "International and Non-U.S. Law Journals" includes International Legal Materials (I.L.M.) "Treaties and Agreements Library," which includes the following sources for U.S. treaties: United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (U.S.T.); Treaties and International Acts Series (T.I.A.S.); KAV agreements; International Legal Materials (I.L.M.). Note: of these titles, the library has the following in hard copy: U.S.T. (Int 83 1952-), T.I.A.S. ( Int 83 1952a-), and I.L.M. (I,REF JX 68 .I5). It has KAV agreements in microfiche (M,MFC JX 231 .U54). "Foreign and International Law Resources Database," which includes the following: international yearbooks and periodicals; U.S. law digests; international tribunals/judicial decisions; other significant works related to foreign and international law. United Nations Treaties and Documents: U.N. Treaties United Nations Treaty Series Int 82 U58 (4th floor) United Nations Treaty Collection - International agreements published in the United Nations Treaty Series (U.N.T.S.) in PDF. Section on Status of Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary-General can be used to find UNTS citation and links to treaty text. U. N. Documents See Bluebook 18th ed. (Rule 21.7) "United Nations Sources," which states: "The Official Record is the preferred source for citations, but documents drawn from the U.N. Website are acceptable." For resolutions (Rule 21.7.2), the Bluebook states: "It is proper to cite to either the Official Record or to the online version." [However, note that the "Official Record" version of resolutions can also be found on the United Nations website.] General Assembly Official Records (GAOR) (1946-1990) - Int 783 O32 Security Council Official Records (SCOR) (1946-1985) - Int 784 O32 U. N. Documents 1986-1997 in microfiche; contact Foreign & International Law Librarian. Selected U.N. Resources and Research Tools: Overview and Search Tips for Legal Research. By Wiltrud Harms (GlobaLex). United Nations Official Document System (ODS) - Documents 1992- in PDF. A "simple search" for a resolution will search only the UN documentation database, which contains the preliminary version only of resolutions. For final version of resolutions, must do "advanced search." However, this will retrieve PDF of official records supplement, but will not include citation. For complete citation information to official records supplement, must use UNBISnet (see below). UN Documentation Centre - Lists of resolutions on first page is a convenience, if using Bluebook "UN website" option--has preliminary version only. UNBISnet - For resolutions, search (browse) by document symbol; "search results" list often includes session, supplement number, and document symbol of the supplement (required by Bluebook if using "official record" source for resolutions) and it will often retrieve the resolution as found in the official records supplement. Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights International Courts and Tribunals Law library website, especially the following: Human Rights and Humanitarian Law International Courts and Tribunals International Criminal Law/War Crimes/Genocide Hard copy reports of human rights and international criminal courts--selected: The Tokyo Major War Crimes Trial I,MON KZ 1181 .J57 1998 Nuremburg trial material Int 6156 (etc.) (several sets) Inter-American Court of Human Rights I,MON KDZ A52I58 (etc.); annual report is at N,KAA KDZ 579 .I58A7337 Inter-American Commission of Human Rights. Annual Report N,KAA JC 599 A45I58 European Court of Human Rights N,EAA KJC 5132 .A52E88 (etc.) International Tribunal for Rwanda I,MON KZ 1201 .A2I58 1999 International Tribunal for Yugoslavia I,MON K 5301 .A495 .J83 1999 (etc.) Judicial Reports / International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia = Recueils judiciaires / Tribunal pénal international pour l'ex-Yougoslavie (Kluwer Law International, 1999-) I,MON K 5301 .A47J83 Annotated Leading Cases of International Criminal Tribunals I,MON KZ 1190 1999 vols. 1-8 International Criminal Court I,MON KZ 6311 .A87 Global War Crimes Tribunal Collection I,MON KZ 1168.5 .G56 1997 International Human Rights Reports I, MON K 3239.23 .I58 Case Law Databases and Finding Guides: HUDOC database. Access to the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, the European Commission of Human Rights, and the Committee of Ministers. HuriSearch portal . HURIDOCS web site. Interights. International Centre for the Legal Protection of Human Rights. Includes Commonwealth and International Human Rights Case Law Databases. International Humanitarian Law (IHL). International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Includes ICRC databases on international humanitarian law. International Law in Domestic Courts A searchable database of "domestic cases in international law from over 60 jurisdictions." Refugee Caselaw Site (The University of Michigan Law School). A searchable database of selected recent decisions from national courts that interpret the legal definition of a "refugee." University of Minnesota Human Rights Library: Search Options WorldLII International Courts and Tribunals Project. The ICT project "aims to provide a comprehensive search facility for final decisions of all international and multi-national courts and tribunals, whether global or regional." Finding Print (hardcopy) Materials in the Library: Browsing: Books about the international protection of human rights in a global context or the human rights situation in countries in more than one region of the world are usually shelved in the "location" I,MON (3rd floor). Example of a location symbol and call number: I,MON K 3240 .B34 2004 (The Role of Human Rights in Foreign Policy). Many books on human rights will be found nearby. Books about the protection of human rights or the human rights situation in a particular country or region are shelved with that country or region. These areas are also on the 3rd floor. Examples: N,EAA KJC 5132 .F86 2001 (Fundamental Rights in Europe...) N,IAA JC 599 .A36C85 2002 (Cultural Transformation and Human Rights in Africa) N,HCP JC 599 .C6R43 2004 (Realms of Freedom in Modern China) Books about the philosophy of rights are likely to be shelved in MON (the Anglo-American and general collection), as are books on human rights in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Within these broad shelving areas, materials relevant to human rights may be found under many different call numbers--not only for "law," but also for subjects such as political science, criminology, and business. It is essential to use NUcat (see below). For a geographical approach, see the Human Rights Browsing chart. Periodicals that tend to include articles on these subjects are shelved in I,PER (2nd floor), which incorporates periodicals on international, comparative, and foreign law, arranged (generally speaking) in alphabetical order by title. Articles on human rights are also published in journals shelved in PER (Anglo-American and general periodicals)(2nd floor). It is essential to use periodical indexes or databases (see below) to identify articles. To ascertain the location symbol and call number for a periodical, do a "title" or "journal title" search in NUcat. The NUcat record will also provide a link to electronic sources for the journal, if available. [Note: some older foreign law material is in closed shelving, and must be requested at the Circulation Desk.] Using NUcat to Identify Books and Periodicals: "Guided Search" Keyword search can lead to Contents notes (chapter headings) Keyword search can lead to Subject Headings. "Subject" search (must use Library of Congress subject headings) Selected LC subject headings: Human rights Humanitarian law Crimes against humanity Criminal jurisdiction Criminal liability (international law) Criminal procedure (international law) Genocide International criminal courts International offenses War crimes NUcat Searching Tips NOTE: NUcat is used to determine if the library system owns a particular periodical, but it is not used to identify periodical articles. For periodical articles, use a periodical index/database (see below). Indexes/Databases for Periodical Articles--Law LegalTrac In print, Current Law Index R,REF K 33 .C87 On Westlaw as Legal Resource Index (LRI) On LexisNexis as Legal Resource Index (LGLIND) Index to Legal Periodicals and Books R,REF K 33 .I5342 On Westlaw (ILP) Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals I,REF K 33 .I529 Legal Journals Index (on Westlaw; database identifier LJI). Indexes "legal journals published in the United Kingdom and Europe as well as journals covering topics pertaining to the laws of the European Community and its member states." RAVE An index to recent (1995-) articles and decisions on public international law and European law. Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International law, Heidelberg, Public International Law Books and since (1996-) articles held by the library. Also, in print, Public International Law: A Current Bibliography of Books and Articles I,REF JX 3091 .P82 Indexes/Databases for Periodical Articles--Non-Law (Selective List) Contemporary Women's Issues Family and Society Studies Worldwide Gender Studies Database International Bibliography of the Social Sciences PAIS International Sociological Abstracts For additional indexes, see Northwestern University Electronic Resources. Explore such areas as Cultural and Gender Studies, History, International Studies, Social Sciences (e.g. Anthropology, Political Science, Psychology) Indexes/Databases for Selected Regions: Bibliography of Asia Studies Handbook of Latin American Studies HAPI Online Online version of Hispanic American Periodical Index Religious Legal Systems--Indexes/Databases: ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials RAMBI (Index of Articles in Jewish Studies) The Jewish National and University Library. Index Islamicus For additional indexes/databases, see the following pages of the law library's web site: Find Legal Articles Find Non-Law Articles Finding Articles and Papers on Foreign and Comparative Law For questions or comments, please consult the Foreign and International Law Librarian.