Docking the Caroline: Understanding the Relevance of the Formula in Contemporary Customary International Law Concerning Self-Defense

Authors

• James A. Green, University of Reading, United Kingdom

Abstract

The famous Caroline incident of 1837 has in the United Nations era been repeatedly cited as representing the position of customary international law with regard to the regulation of forcible action taken in self-defense. Over recent years, however, the relevance of the incident to the contemporary legal regime has been questioned by a number of scholars. This article assesses these criticisms and then employs a different methodology to others that have re-appraised the incident: examining State practice and opinio juris to determine the customary international law of today, against which the Caroline formula can then be analyzed. It is concluded that whilst the formula in itself does not represent contemporary customary international law, the total exclusion of the Caroline from scholarly discourse over the current position of the customary international law of selfdefense is unhelpful, because the formula is an extremely useful tool to aid our understanding of this area of the law.

Disciplines

International Law | Law | Legal History

Recommended Citation

James A. Green, Docking the Caroline: Understanding the Relevance of the Formula in Contemporary Customary International Law Concerning Self-Defense, 14 Cardozo J. Int'l & Comp. L. 429 (2006).
Available at: https://larc.cardozo.yu.edu/cjicl/vol14/iss2/5