Soft law in light of the concept of sources of international law: Contributing to the discussion

Authors

Abstract

The theory of sources in public international law has been under discussion recently, both for its progress in its areas of manifestation and for the new actors present in it, who have been creating a cluster of instruments grouped under the concept of soft law, alleged by some doctrine and jurisprudence as containers of legal obligations. This makes it necessary to discuss its nature as a binding legal source and its place in the theory identified, since it is necessary to avoid forcing a new doctrinal generation of formal source, which ends up distorting the consensualism under which States operate and to remove certainty from the protection that individuals must have with regard to their State actions.

Keywords:

Soft law, Sources of International Law, Contemporary International Law, Internacional society, Source theory