Introduction

Abstract

Scholarly works addressing the relationship between theory and method in international law abound. However, while theoretical approaches to the study of international law routinely feature in the agenda of international law scholars, the parallel conceptualization of international law research methods remains underdeveloped. This chapter introduces the issue of international law research methods as an object of scholarly inquiry. It argues that international law methods describe the techniques of acquiring knowledge about the international legal system in general or specific norms in particular while methodology represents the theory of methods which explains and justifies the methods used in a particular instance. It then reviews some of the international law research methods featuring in the individual chapters of the Handbook with a view to outlining their basic characteristics and illustrating the pluralism of approaches characterizing contemporary research in international law.