These volumes trace the legal measures by which emphasis has shifted from support of the whaling industry to ensuring an effective legal system for the preservation of whales.

This work contributes to the study of "international environmental law", addressing its development over three time periods: the traditional period, the modern era, and the post-modern period. It challenges the reader to think about the subject and its development within a broader framework.

Whales and elephants are iconic giants of the marine and terrestrial animal world. Both are conspicuous representatives of wildlife conservation. The issues of whaling and the ivory trade are closely linked, both legally and politically, in many ways; some obvious, and some surprising. The treatment of both whales and elephants will be politically and legally contentious for years to come, and is of great significance to conservation in general. This book examines the current state of international environmental law and wildlife conservation through a comparative analysis of the treatment of whales and elephants. In particular, it describes the separate histories of international governance of both whales and elephants, presenting the various treaties through which conservation has been implemented. It is shown that international environmental law is influenced and shaped by important political actors – many with opposing views on how best conservation, and sustainable development, principles are to be implemented. Modern environmental treaties are changing as weaknesses and loopholes are exposed in older, and possibly outdated, treaties such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (ICRW). Such weaknesses can be seen in the efforts made by some states to circumvent or weaken CITES and the International Whaling Commission and to resume commercial whaling, and further in the efforts of countries to resume trade in ivory. The argument is made that the Convention on Biological Diversity could be used to begin reconciling opposed views and to focus conservation efforts. The argument is made that effective conservation of species cannot be achieved through individual treaties, but only through a synergistic approach involving multilateral environmental agreements – 'ecosystems of legal instruments'.

Considers legislation to authorize regulation of whaling and to authorize U.S. membership in the International Whaling Commission.

International Marine Mammal Law is a comprehensive, introductory volume on the legal regimes governing the conservation and utilisation of marine mammals. Written as a textbook, it provides basic overviews of international conservation law, which enable the reader to understand the greater implications of governance of a specific group of species. Paired with biological information on some marine mammal species, the international regimes for whales, seals and polar bears are explored — either as part of global regimes of international environmental governance or as regimes that were specifically designed for them. The book concludes with outlooks on the future of international marine mammal law, particularly in light of Japan’s withdrawal from the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling in July 2019.

This publication gives an in-depth analysis of a very important but complex case before the International Court of Justice. It deals with substantive and procedural aspects of the case, analysed extensively by eminent international lawyers and practitioners. The Whaling in Antarctic case is a landmark case in international law. Contributors: Malgosia Fitzmaurice and Dai Tamada (eds.); Caroline E. Foster; Shotaro Hamamoto; Theodore Christakis; Christian Tams; Mika Hayashi; Joji Morishita; Donald R. Rothwell; Hironobu Sakai; Anthony Press; Akiho Shibata; Yuri Takaya.