Report of the International Law Commission on the Work of Its 55th Session

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 152 Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its 55th session, published in 2004.

What other versions does this mandate have?

27 versions · 1953–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/164

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2025	A/RES/80/164	Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its 76th session	3,121	76%Compare
2024	A/RES/79/121	Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its 75th session	2,857	85%Compare
2023	A/RES/78/108	Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its 74th session	2,747	65%Compare
2019	A/RES/73/265	Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its 70th session	2,790	80%Compare
2017	A/RES/72/116	Report of the International Law Commission on the work of its 69th session	2,421	74%Compare

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

2 reports · 2007–2009

Year	Symbol	Title		Mandate resolution
2009	A/64/283	Assistance to special rapporteurs of the International Law Commission report of the Secretary-General		A/RES/63/123
2007	A/62/87	Strengthening of the coordination of emergency humanitarian assistance of the United Nations report of the Secretary-General		A/RES/61/34

What subjects does this mandate have?

15 subjects

Conference and Meeting Services Consultations Cost Effectiveness Documentation Experts Information Exchange Inter-Agency Cooperation International Law Laws and Regulations Meeting Records Report Preparation Responsibility of International Organizations Shared Natural Resources Treaties Water Quality

What’s in this document?

21 operative paragraphs

Takes note with appreciation of the report of the International Law Commission on the work of its fifty-fifth session,1 and recommends that the Commission continue its work on the topics in its current programme, taking into account the comments and observations of Governments, whether submitted in writing or expressed orally in debates in the General Assembly;

Draws the attention of Governments to the importance for the International Law Commission of having their views on the various aspects involved in the topics on the agenda of the Commission, in particular on all the specific issues identified in chapter III of its report;

Reiterates its invitation to Governments, within the context of paragraph 2 above, to provide information to the International Law Commission regarding State practice on the topic “Unilateral acts of States”;

Invites Governments, within the context of paragraph 2 above, to provide information to the International Law Commission regarding national legislation, bilateral and other agreements and arrangements with regard to the use and management of transboundary groundwaters, in particular those governing quality and quantity of such waters, relevant to the topic currently entitled “Shared natural resources”;

Requests the Secretary-General to invite States and international organizations to submit information concerning their practice relevant to the topic “Responsibility of international organizations”, including cases in which States members of an international organization may be regarded as responsible for acts of the organization;

Invites the International Law Commission to continue taking measures to enhance its efficiency and productivity;

Encourages the International Law Commission to continue taking cost-saving measures at its future sessions;

Takes note of paragraph 448 of the report of the International Law Commission, and decides that the next session of the Commission shall be held at the United Nations Office at Geneva from 3 May to 4 June and from 5 July to 6 August 2004;

Welcomes the enhanced dialogue between the International Law Commission and the Sixth Committee at the fifty-eighth session of the General Assembly, stresses the desirability of further enhancing the dialogue between the two bodies, and in this context encourages, inter alia, the continued practice of informal consultations in the form of discussions between the members of the Sixth Committee and the members of the Commission attending the fifty-ninth session of the Assembly;

Encourages delegations, during the debate on the report of the International Law Commission to adhere as far as possible to the structured work programme agreed to by the Sixth Committee and to consider presenting concise and focused statements;

Encourages Member States to consider being represented at the level of legal adviser during the first week in which the report of the International Law Commission is discussed in the Sixth Committee to enable high-level discussions on issues of international law, and decides that the week shall henceforth be known as “International Law Week”;

Requests the International Law Commission to continue to pay special attention to indicating in its annual report, for each topic, any specific issues on which expressions of views by Governments, either in the Sixth Committee or in written form, would be of particular interest in providing effective guidance for the Commission in its further work;

Takes note of paragraphs 449 to 455 of the report of the International Law Commission with regard to cooperation with other bodies, and encourages the Commission to continue the implementation of article 16, paragraph (e), and article 26, paragraphs 1 and 2, of its statute in order to further strengthen cooperation between the Commission and other bodies concerned with international law, having in mind the usefulness of such cooperation;

Notes that consulting with national organizations and individual experts concerned with international law may assist Governments in considering whether to make comments and observations on drafts submitted by the International Law Commission and in formulating their comments and observations;

Reaffirms its previous decisions concerning the indispensable role of the Codification Division of the Office of Legal Affairs of the Secretariat in providing assistance to the International Law Commission;

Approves the conclusions reached by the International Law Commission in paragraphs 440 to 443 of its report regarding documentation of the Commission, and reaffirms its previous decisions concerning the summary records of the International Law Commission;⁴

⁴See resolutions 32/151, para. 10, and 37/111, para. 5, and all subsequent resolutions on the annual reports of the International Law Commission to the General Assembly.

Expresses the hope that the International Law Seminar will continue to be held in connection with the sessions of the International Law Commission and that an increasing number of participants, in particular from developing countries, will be given the opportunity to attend the Seminar, and appeals to States to continue to make urgently needed voluntary contributions to the United Nations Trust Fund for the International Law Seminar;

Requests the Secretary-General to provide the International Law Seminar with adequate services, including interpretation, as required, and encourages him to continue considering ways to improve the structure and content of the Seminar;

Also requests the Secretary-General to forward to the International Law Commission, for its attention, the records of the debate on the report of the Commission at the fifty-eighth session of the General Assembly, together with such written statements as delegations may circulate in conjunction with their oral statements, and to prepare and distribute a topical summary of the debate, following established practice;

Requests the Secretariat to circulate to States, as soon as possible after the conclusion of the session of the International Law Commission, chapter II of its report containing a summary of the work of that session, chapter III containing the specific issues on which the views of Governments would be of particular interest to the Commission and the draft articles adopted on either first or second reading by the Commission;

Recommends that the debate on the report of the International Law Commission at the fifty-ninth session of the General Assembly commence on 1 November 2004.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What other versions does this mandate have?

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

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