2.8 Modern Trends (Considerations of Humanity; Unilateral

Declarations) Considerations of humanity — the Martens Clause's lineage: until customary law develops, persons remain under "the principles of humanity and the dictates of public conscience" — the Hague preamble's sentence surviving a century as humanitarian law's conscience-clause (Tadić's and the ICJ's invocations); Unilateral declarations — states' solemn statements can bind: the Nuclear Tests cases (France's declarations creating legal commitments, reliance and good faith doing the work) — the modern source-candidate; Soft law — guidelines, codes, standards (the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights; the OECD guidelines): norms without formal obligation that harden through practice; Judicial cross-fertilization (international courts citing each other) and private standard- setting (lex mercatoria's cousins, internet governance); The counter-trend — fragmentation and its management (lex specialis; Article 103 Charter primacy). Codification (the unit's closing idea): from the Hague Conference era through the ILC to the diplomatic conferences — the drive to write custom down, declare it, and progressively develop it: codification as international law's self-improvement project. The Sources' Working Map (the answer's closing table) Source Basis Binding force Exemplary authority Treaty Express consent On parties VCLT 1969; UN Charter Custom Practice + opinio juris On all (except persistent objector; never vs. jus cogens) Lotus; North Sea; Paquete Habana General principles Common municipal recognition On all Chorzów (reparation) Judicial decisions Subsidiary (Art. 38(1) (d); Art.…