International Law

by Malcolm N. Shaw

Fully revised and updated to December 2002, Malcolm Shaw's bestselling textbook on international law is a clear, authoritative and comprehensive introduction to the subject. The fifth edition includes new material on Inter-state Courts and Tribunals, arbitration tribunals and the role of international institutions such as the WTO. It will remain an invaluable resource for students and practitioners alike. While essential reading for students of international relations and the political sciences, the scope of the text also makes it of interest to lawyers and government and international employees. Previous Edition Hb (1997): 0-521-59384-0 Previous Edition Pb (1997): 0-521-57667-9

Genres: Law, Nonfiction, International Relations, Textbooks, Politics, Academic, Philosophy

1434 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1991

Reviews

[Kamilia Barkasi · Rating 3 out of 5]

if you find yourself in a position where you need to read the entire book in order to pass a class, don’t try to do it in the span of 3 weeks, and definitely don’t travel and ignore the book for 8 full days out of those 3 weeks. the book itself is fine, very informative, although at times a little frustrating because it’s clearly written from a western pov, but the situation and duress I read this under made my life a living hell. I can’t tell you how much of this I retained, but the exam is open book (hence me reading and annotating it all in such a short amount of time), so I think I’ll be fine.

note: if this is your textbook for IL, you don’t need to be afraid-just please read as the class progresses to save yourself a lot of pain in the long run. on the other hand, if you picked this up at some scholastic book fair because you want to self educate… consider your life choices and put the book down. go listen to a podcast or something.

[Jiewei Li · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good basic overview. At times, but arguably verbose. Provided good intros to each subject before other textbooks, reading cases, and scholarly articles.

[Nastaliq · Rating 5 out of 5]

This new edition is absolutely excellent. Highly recommended. Covers all the essential topics from philosophical concerns (what is international law and how is it binding? what are the sources of it?), to international criminal law and various tribunals and human-rights concerns. An excellent resource for students and practitioners alike.

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mission 2026: Binge reviewing all previous Reads, I was too slothful to review back when I read them

Reading Malcolm N. Shaw’s 'International Law' felt less like engaging a book than like entering a meticulously governed terrain where aspiration and power coexist in permanent tension.

Returning to it now, I was struck by how sober—and quietly unsettling—it is. Shaw writes with encyclopedic calm, mapping doctrines, treaties, precedents, and institutions with an almost judicial restraint that resists both cynicism and idealism.

Earlier, I read it as a technical manual; now, I read it as a document of hope under pressure. What lingered most was the fragility embedded in its orderliness. Every rule seems shadowed by an exception, every principle haunted by enforcement gaps, political vetoes, and selective compliance.

And yet the book never collapses into despair. Shaw refuses the fashionable claim that international law is merely decorative, insisting—through accumulation rather than rhetoric—that norms matter precisely because they are contested.

Reading it today, amid wars justified through legal language even as they hollow it out, the book feels almost tragic in its commitment to coherence. The prose is deliberately unglamorous, but that very dryness becomes ethical: international law here is not a moral spectacle but a slow, procedural struggle against arbitrariness.

What unsettled me was realising how much faith this system demands—not blind faith, but disciplined belief that articulation itself constrains power over time. Shaw does not romanticise institutions like the UN or the ICJ; he situates them within political reality while insisting they still shape outcomes, however imperfectly.

I finished the book less confident in justice as an outcome, but more convinced of law as a language that refuses to disappear.

'International Law' does not promise salvation; it documents persistence. It asks the reader to accept that legality often advances not through triumph but through survival—through texts, precedents, and arguments that endure long enough to be invoked when brute force briefly pauses.

Most recommended.

[Jared Donis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decade after law school, I finally got to finish the entire content of this book. Brushed up on concepts which I have almost forgotten. Shaw’s work is a standard textbook on international law. I benefited from a combined reading of this edition and the latest one (ninth edition). It was a slow read due to the rich explanations provided in each chapter (perhaps only law books have hundreds of footnotes for a single chapter). Nevertheless, he covers almost everything and gives plentiful relevant materials for further advanced reading.

Shaw’s diligence in updating this work is truly remarkable. He has added recent developments in the field in each topic.

Admirable professional! Kudos to you, sir.

[Daniel Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

probably the best textbook on international law. However, its a 1000+ page book on international law, so...

[Will Norton]

This book is extremely technical and length, as you would expect from a Cambridge textbook. I found the United Nations chapter informative but the rest is somewhat of a muck. The legal issues like repreparation and conflict resolution had a surface understanding with me having glimpsed at history. This is reading that I enjoyed yet didn't fully able to understand since I never set forth on the path to understand law. Still, Capitalism teaches us to all do only what are good at. Perhaps the surface understanding was enough for my internal learning pleasure and curiosity.

[Anita Khojava · Rating 1 out of 5]

I finished the 8th edition (2017) of International Law by Malcolm N. Shaw, and honestly, I deserve extra credit just for surviving it. This book is a never-ending wall of text. There are no diagrams, no visuals, no mercy! The tone is so monotone it turns even interesting international law concepts into a punishment. It doesn’t try to explain, guide, or engage, it just dumps information and expects you to cope. If you enjoy lifeless academic suffering, this book is for you. Otherwise, one star is generous:))

[Kassidy Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not appreciate this book in undergrad enough to prepare me for actually studying law. Although its dense and long it will give you most of what an international public law course discusses.

The only thing its lacking is the discussion of myth systems and international codes in the realm of international law and politics.

[Edward Kasi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best International Law author and text in my opinion. His succinct explanations and the case law examples within,are like no other international Law text I've read before and after his book.

[Art'Z Anantachai · Rating 5 out of 5]

good

[Ashfaq · Rating 5 out of 5]

G

[Matilde · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only book so far to have cleared up reprisals and countermeasures for me.

[David Bernstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

The leading authority on international law. Shaw is a master of the subject.

[Nabi Bux · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

[Petrus Chandra Wasi · Rating 5 out of 5]

good book

[Labib Wajdi · Rating 5 out of 5]

made me cry

[Tony Dutton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really useful reference work

[Ven Chenda]

this book is very good

[Peter]

So, the edition in the possession of this reviewer has 981 pages. Chapters 12 and 13 on jurisdiction and immunities from jurisdiction respectively, have numerous sections of text marked up in highlighter pen: and then came brexit. The issues raised in these chapters may find better coverage in Hazel Fox's Law of State Immunity; the scope of private international law is considered briefly on page one.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much easier read than I thought it would be

[Emese]

all animals are equal

[Keith Johnstone · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best and most easily accessible for University study

[Ismail Youssif · Rating 5 out of 5]

GOOD

[Ralph Janik · Rating 4 out of 5]

the classic textbook. Unfortunately no chapters on international trade law and investment law. Big minus

[David Nzogera]

My re

[Michal]

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[Yusuf Agah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found it too much detailed, particularly examples from jurisprudence and implementation of the UK and the US. It is much like that Shaw is promoting himself for an international judgeship. But it does not mean that it is not useful. There is absolutely huge amount of hard work behind this book.

[Khayala Aghamalieva]

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