ABSTRACT
Some years ago, Tony Carty wrote of ‘The Decay of International Law’.1
In a prescient passage, he argued:
Official argument is, inevitably, confined to one-sided assertions of legal principle which it is thought are likely to appeal, along with many other ‘non-legal’ factors, either to a domestic audience or to particular allied powers. Attempts to ‘persuade’ the adversary are exceptional. Legal doctrine tries to carry the discourse further to precisely this stage. It has nothing to lose but its reputation for integrity.2
