Guides: Researching the United Nations: The U.N.- Getting Started

Resources for the U.N. and its Bodies

E-books

International Legal Research in a Nutshell by Marci Hoffman
ISBN: 9781684675845
Publication Date: 2021-05-07
This Nutshell provides a basic introduction to international and foreign legal research for the non-specialist. It offers guidance through the unfamiliar pathways of research using international and non-US legal materials and demystifies the world of treaties and international case law. Since it's aimed at the non-specialist, it provides straight-forward background information on the United Nations and the European Union and includes guidance using the documents and legal materials of these institutions. There are extensive links to the rich world of Web resources, but it also describes print research tools that remain important in this field. It also sets out a road map for approaching a research problem involving international, foreign and comparative law. Finally, there is information on keeping current on new information and resources as well as tips for how to do handle source collection and cite-checking an international law journal article.

This title has a chapter dedicated to the United Nations (Chapter 8). It can also be accessed as an e-book on West Academic with your USDOne login.

United Nations Treaty Collection
The United Nations Treaty Series contains all international treaties, both unilateral and multilateral. It also provides country specific U.N. documents and U.N. committee reports.The search function allows filters by country, by document type, and by issuing U.N. body.
CALI- United Nations Research
CALI requires you to register to access their lessons. The United Nations research lesson provides a basic overview on how to begin researching the United Nations and its organs and tips on finding U.N. documents
CALI- Finding ICJ Decisions
This CALI lesson gives an overview of the ICJ and how to find decisions given by the court.

U.N. Bodies

U.N. General Assembly

- The General Assembly is the main deliberative and policy-making body of the United Nations.

- All 193 member countries participate in the General Assembly. Each country has one vote, and all votes count equally.

- The regular session of the General Assembly begins in September of each year and usually continues through mid-December.

- http://www.un.org/en/ga/

U.N. Security Council

- The Security Council investigates disputes, determines the existence of threats to international peace and security, and recommends what action (including military action) should be taken against aggressors.

- The Security Council is made up of the five permanent members (China, France, Russian Federation, U.K., U.S.A.) and ten other members elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms.

- http://www.un.org/en/sc/

U.N. Economic and Security Council

- The Economic and Social Council serves as the central forum for discussing international economic and social issues, and for formulating policy recommendations addressed to member states and the UN

- The 54 member governments of ECOSOC are elected by the General Assembly for terms of three years, with 18 elected each year. It holds one four-week session each year in July

- https://www.un.org/ecosoc/en/

U.N. Trusteeship Council (Inactive)

- The Trusteeship Council was responsible for administering and preparing eleven trust territories for self-government and independence.

- The Trusteeship Council suspended operations on November 1, 1994, with the independence of Palau, the last remaining U.N. trust territory, and will meet only as the occasion requires.

U.N. Secretariat

- The Secretariat provides studies, information, and facilities needed by the various bodies of the United Nations for their meetings.

- The Secretariat comprises the Secretary-General and tens of thousands of international UN staff members working in duty stations around the world.

- https://www.un.org/en/about-us/secretariat

International Court of Justice

- The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

- The fifteen judges on the court are elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council for terms of nine years.

- https://www.icj-cij.org/en