Treaties and International Agreements
Guide to print and electronic resources for finding bilateral and multilateral treaties.
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Official Sources for U.S. Treaties
Bluebook Rule 21.4.5(a) (i) and (ii) requires that you cite to one of the following official U.S. treaty sources (in order of preference). If the agreement has not appeared in one of these official sources, cite an unofficial source (see boxes below).
- Dept. of State Press Releases
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The Office of the Spokesperson releases statements, media notes, notices to the press and fact sheets on a daily basis. - Senate Executive Documents
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For historical Senate Treaty and Executive documents, search by the document number on Proquest Congressional. - Senate Treaty Documents
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Coverage from 1981-2015. (Click here for help using HeinOnline.) - Statutes at Large (Stat.)
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This database includes complete coverage of the Statutes at Large, featuring every law, public and private, ever enacted by Congress. It also includes early federal codes and compilations of statutes, as well as other related works. (Use: HeinOnline's Advanced Search Syntax User’s Guide.) - Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS Agreements)
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Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS) is a series of consecutively numbered, individually paginated pamphlets containing the texts of agreements in English and other official languages of the agreement. After appearing in TIAS in slip form, U.S. treaties and international agreements are published in bound volumes of United States Treaties and Other International Agreements. (Use: HeinOnline's Advanced Search Syntax User’s Guide.) - U.S. Bilateral Investment Treaties
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The Office of Trade Agreements Negotiation and Compliance (TANC) helps make trade agreements work for American exporters and investors. Provides links to bilateral investment treaties (BITs) with over 40 countries. - U.S. Dept. of State Dispatch
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Published weekly from 1939-1989, the Department of State Bulletin provided news coverage of world events and analysis of government policy and international relations. It served as the official record of U.S. foreign policy for that 50-year time period. (Use: HeinOnline's Advanced Search Syntax User’s Guide.) - United Nations Treaty Series (UNTS)
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A collection of treaties and international agreements registered or filed and recorded with and published by the Secretariat since 1946, pursuant to Article 102 of the Charter. The UNTS includes the texts of treaties in their authentic language(s), along with translations. (Use: HeinOnline's Advanced Search Syntax User’s Guide.) - United States Income Tax Treaties
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The United States has tax treaties with a number of foreign countries. This page provides links to tax treaties between the United States and particular countries. - United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (U.S.T.)
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UST includes the text of each treaty in the languages of the signatories. Although several volumes are typically published each year, at present UST is well-behind schedule in publishing the most-current treaty actions of the United States. HeinOnline includes all published volumes of the UST series. (Use: HeinOnline's Advanced Search Syntax User’s Guide.)
Other Sources for Treaty Texts
According to Bluebook rule 21.4.5(b), for agreements to which the United States is not a party, cite one source published by an international organization, if therein. If not, cite the official source of one signatory, if therein. If the treaty is not found in a signatory's treaty source, cite an unofficial treaty source.
- African Union (OAU/AU) Treaties
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The African Union (AU) is a continental body consisting of the 55 member states that make up the countries of the African Continent. It was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU, 1963-1999). - The Avalon Project
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An initiative of the Yale Law School Lillian Goldman Law Library, The Avalon Project will hosts digital documents relevant to the fields of Law, History, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy and Government. - EUR-Lex Council of Europe Treaties
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EUR-Lex contains the founding, amending and accession treaties, as well as some protocols. - Hague Conference on Private International Law
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The Hague Conference on Private International Law is a global inter-governmental organization with 85 Members (84 States and the European Union) representing all continents. A melting pot of different legal traditions, it develops and services multilateral legal instruments, which respond to global needs. - League of Nations Treaty Series (L.N.T.S.)
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Treaties and International engagements registered with the Secretariat of the League of Nations, collection includes 1920-1946, and a General Index. (Use: HeinOnline's Advanced Search Syntax User’s Guide.) - Organization of American States (OAS) Treaties
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The OAS brings together all 35 independent states of the Americas and constitutes the main political, juridical, and social governmental forum in the Hemisphere. In addition, it has granted permanent observer status to 69 states, as well as to the European Union (EU). All Inter-American treaties are classified by year and subject. - United Nations Treaty Series (UNTS)
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A collection of treaties and international agreements registered or filed and recorded with and published by the Secretariat since 1946, pursuant to Article 102 of the Charter. The UNTS includes the texts of treaties in their authentic language(s), along with translations. (Use: HeinOnline's Advanced Search Syntax User’s Guide.) - UNCTAD International Investment Agreements Navigator (IIAN)
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United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)'s library of bilateral trade agreements, free trade agreements, and more. (Use: International Investment Agreements Navigator Advanced Search Tips.)
Statement of Reliability of Online Information
While the Internet with its wealth of information is a good place to conduct basic research, it is not ideal for in-depth thorough legal research. It is the responsibility of each user to establish the validity, integrity, and reliability of information found on the Internet.
However, the Internet can be useful for locating some types of legal information such as current legal documents. It is important that the legal researcher use authoritative and reliable web sites for locating legal information and documents. Although the web pages listed here have been selected by a skilled reference librarian, the individual researcher is responsible for evaluating the web pages.
Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply & Questions to Ask is a good source on finding information on the Internet.