University of New South Wales International Law End-Term Exam with
questions and answers with rationales 2026
UNSW International Law End-Term Exam (2026)
Course Alignment: LAWS1021 / JURD7211 – Public International Law
Question Format: Questions + Rationales
PART I: FOUNDATIONS & PERSONALITY (Qs 1-25)
Themes: Definitions, legal personality, states, recognition, and self-determination.
Q1. How is Public International Law best defined?
A) A system of laws governing individuals within a sovereign state
B) A body of rules governing the conduct between states and international actors
C) A moral code enforced by the United Nations Security Council
D) The domestic law of international organizations
Answer: B
,Rationale: International law is the decentralized legal system regulating the
activities of states and international entities. Unlike domestic law, there is no
single world government, but rather a consent-based system .
Q2. The formal sources of international law are enumerated in Article 38 of which
statute?
A) The UN Charter
B) The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties
C) The Statute of the International Court of Justice (ICJ)
D) The Rome Statute
Answer: C
Rationale: Article 38(1) of the ICJ Statute is the authoritative list: (a) international
conventions (treaties), (b) international custom, (c) general principles of law, and
(d) judicial decisions/teachings as subsidiary means.
Q3. Which of the following is NOT required for statehood under the Montevideo
Convention (1933)?
A) Permanent population
B) Defined territory
,C) Recognition by the UN General Assembly
D) Capacity to enter relations with other states
Answer: C
Rationale: Recognition by other states is a political act, not a legal prerequisite for
statehood. The Montevideo criteria are: defined territory, permanent population,
effective government, and capacity to enter foreign relations.
Q4. What is the legal effect of "declaratory" versus "constitutive" theories of
recognition?
A) Constitutive theory creates the state; declaratory merely acknowledges it.
B) Declarative theory creates the state; constitutive acknowledges it.
C) They are identical in legal effect.
D) Constitutive is used only for governments.
Answer: A
Rationale: The constitutive theory posits that recognition by existing states
creates the legal personality. The declaratory theory holds that statehood exists
, automatically upon meeting Montevideo criteria; recognition is merely a political
acknowledgment.
Q5. When does a State possess international legal personality?
A) Upon signature of the UN Charter
B) Only when recognized by the United States
C) When it has a permanent population, defined territory, government, and
capacity to enter relations
D) Only when a monarchy is established
Answer: C
Rationale: The Montevideo Convention requirements form the customary basis
for determining when an entity qualifies as a state with full international legal
personality.
Q6. A new government seizes power through a military coup, but the previous
exiled government still claims legitimacy. How does international law generally
determine which entity represents the state?
A) Based on elections held under the old constitution
B) Based on the principle of effective control over the territory
questions and answers with rationales 2026
UNSW International Law End-Term Exam (2026)
Course Alignment: LAWS1021 / JURD7211 – Public International Law
Question Format: Questions + Rationales
PART I: FOUNDATIONS & PERSONALITY (Qs 1-25)
Themes: Definitions, legal personality, states, recognition, and self-determination.
Q1. How is Public International Law best defined?
A) A system of laws governing individuals within a sovereign state
B) A body of rules governing the conduct between states and international actors
C) A moral code enforced by the United Nations Security Council
D) The domestic law of international organizations
Answer: B
,Rationale: International law is the decentralized legal system regulating the
activities of states and international entities. Unlike domestic law, there is no
single world government, but rather a consent-based system .
Q2. The formal sources of international law are enumerated in Article 38 of which
statute?
A) The UN Charter
B) The Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties
C) The Statute of the International Court of Justice (ICJ)
D) The Rome Statute
Answer: C
Rationale: Article 38(1) of the ICJ Statute is the authoritative list: (a) international
conventions (treaties), (b) international custom, (c) general principles of law, and
(d) judicial decisions/teachings as subsidiary means.
Q3. Which of the following is NOT required for statehood under the Montevideo
Convention (1933)?
A) Permanent population
B) Defined territory
,C) Recognition by the UN General Assembly
D) Capacity to enter relations with other states
Answer: C
Rationale: Recognition by other states is a political act, not a legal prerequisite for
statehood. The Montevideo criteria are: defined territory, permanent population,
effective government, and capacity to enter foreign relations.
Q4. What is the legal effect of "declaratory" versus "constitutive" theories of
recognition?
A) Constitutive theory creates the state; declaratory merely acknowledges it.
B) Declarative theory creates the state; constitutive acknowledges it.
C) They are identical in legal effect.
D) Constitutive is used only for governments.
Answer: A
Rationale: The constitutive theory posits that recognition by existing states
creates the legal personality. The declaratory theory holds that statehood exists
, automatically upon meeting Montevideo criteria; recognition is merely a political
acknowledgment.
Q5. When does a State possess international legal personality?
A) Upon signature of the UN Charter
B) Only when recognized by the United States
C) When it has a permanent population, defined territory, government, and
capacity to enter relations
D) Only when a monarchy is established
Answer: C
Rationale: The Montevideo Convention requirements form the customary basis
for determining when an entity qualifies as a state with full international legal
personality.
Q6. A new government seizes power through a military coup, but the previous
exiled government still claims legitimacy. How does international law generally
determine which entity represents the state?
A) Based on elections held under the old constitution
B) Based on the principle of effective control over the territory
