Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2020
Abstract
Historical practice supports the conclusion that the President can unilaterally withdraw the United States from treaties which an earlier President joined with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the Senate, at least as long as this withdrawal is consistent with international law. This Article considers a further question that to date is deeply underexplored. This is: does the original Senate resolution of advice and consent to a treaty remain effective even after a President has withdrawn the United States from a treaty? I argue that the answer to this question is yes, except in certain limited circumstances. This answer in turn has important consequences. It means that, as a matter of U.S. domestic law, a future President can rejoin treaties without needing to return to the Senate for advice and consent. The Article concludes by situating this claim within a broader account of the distribution of foreign affairs powers.
Keywords
Foreign relations & constitutional law, separation & distribution of foreign affairs powers, treaty formation & withdrawal, advice & consent resolutions, treaty rejoining
Publication Title
Virginia Law Review
Repository Citation
Galbraith, Jean, "Rejoining Treaties" (2020). All Faculty Scholarship. 2182.
https://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/faculty_scholarship/2182
Included in
American Politics Commons, Constitutional Law Commons, International Law Commons, International Relations Commons, Law and Politics Commons, Legal History Commons, Legal Theory Commons, National Security Law Commons, President/Executive Department Commons, Public Law and Legal Theory Commons
Publication Citation
106 Va. L. Rev. 73 (2020)