How Interpretation Makes International Law

"Venzke's philosophically and dogmatically thoughtful work provides a sophisticated translation of critical linguistic arguments into concrete conclusions for the law."
Chris Thomale, Archives for Philosophy of Law and Social Philosophy

"Weil worth reading . . . A welcome contribution to international law."
Jan Klabbers, European Journal of International Law

"[Anyone] who does not read [this book] will spend a lot of time with unnecessary problems." Ralph Christensen, Juristenzeitung

"Ingo Venzke's insightful work on the changing of international norms by way of interpretation cornes at an opportune moment . . . Its main achievement lies in its critical approach to exposing where authority and power really lie."
Irina Buga, British Yearbook of International Law

Challenging the classic narrative that sovereign states make the law that constrains them, this book argues that treaties and other sources of international law form only the starting point of legal authority. Interpretation can shift the meaning of texts and, in its own way, make law. In the practice of interpretation actors debate the meaning of the written and customary laws, and so contribute to the making of new law. In such cases it is the actor's semantic authority that is key - the capacity for their interpretation to be accepted and become established as new reference points for legal discourse. The book identifies the practice of interpretation as a significant space for international lawmaking, using the key examples of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the Appellate Body of the WTO to show how international institutions are able to shape and develop their constituent instruments by adding layers of interpretation, and moving the terms of discourse.
The book applies developments in linguistics to the practice of international legal interpretation, building on semantic pragmatism to overcome traditional explanations of lawmaking and to offer a fresh account of how the practice of interpretation makes international law. It discusses the normative implications that arise from viewing interpretation in this light, and the implications that the importance of semantic changes has for understanding the development of international law. The book tests the potential of international law and its doctrine to respond to semantic change, and ultimately ponders how semantic authority can be justified democratically in a normative pluriverse.

Ingo Venzke is Associate Professor at the Department of International and European Law of the University of Amsterdam.