Areas The different areas have also had an impact on the scope and content of soft law instruments. The four areas studied used soft law, but to varying degrees and for different purposes. At the global level, universally binding human rights treaties have declined over time (i.e. comprehensive human rights declarations), while more specific and non-binding agreements dealing with such complex issues as religious and indigenous rights have increased. At the regional level, non-binding agreements and general treaties have multiplied over time. Keywords: declarations, general principles, treaty, non-binding, resolutions, soft law, United Nations General Assembly * Environment In the field of the environment, soft law generally follows treaties and is used to give concrete expression to principles less clearly defined in the text of the treaty. In addition, the regionalization of non-binding environmental law is generally the result of geographical realities. For example, the Indian Ocean is obviously very different from the Baltic Sea and requires a strong legal governance approach. Soft law is attractive because it often contains ambitious objectives aimed at the best possible scenario. However, the language of many soft law documents can be contradictory, inconsistent with existing legal obligations, and potentially duplicate existing legal or policy processes. Another important point is that negotiators are not blind to the possibility of lying secretly in soft law. If a negotiating party believes that soft law has the potential to turn into something binding, this will negatively affect the negotiation process, and soft law instruments will be watered down and limited by so many restrictions that it makes little sense to create them.
Soft law is also seen as a flexible option – it avoids immediate and uncompromising commitment under treaties, and it is also seen as a potentially faster route to legal obligations than the slowness of customary international law. Over time, in today`s globalized society, it is easy to use the media and the Internet to disseminate knowledge about the content of declarations and commitments at international conferences. In this way, these ambitious non-commitments often capture the imagination of citizens who begin to believe in these soft law instruments as if they were legal instruments. In turn, it is believed that this will ultimately have an impact on governments that are forced to take into account the wishes of citizens, NGOs, organizations, courts and even companies that refer to these soft law instruments so frequently and with such importance that they begin to prove legal norms. Nevertheless, dependence on soft law persists and its application is unlikely to diminish; It is much more likely to be used to a greater extent, as it also serves as a « testing ground » for innovative new ideas for which policy formulations are still being developed in a world of rapid change and future contentious challenges such as climate change. * Human rights In the field of human rights, soft law has been used mainly as a precursor to binding treaties. Soft law was seen as a means of establishing a consensus of norms among the members of an agreement, which could then be codified by binding legislation. Soft law is very important in the field of international environmental law, where States are reluctant to engage in many environmental initiatives when trying to balance the environment with economic and social objectives.
It is also important in the field of international economic law and international sustainable development law. Soft law is also important in human resources management such as gender equality, diversity and other issues (e.g. B, health and safety). In the social field, so-called « binding » legislation often leaves considerable room for manoeuvre and interpretation, while soft law instruments can sometimes be imposed on their suppliers by powerful stakeholders. [2] * Trade/Finance In order to facilitate free trade, the trade/finance sector has the least burdensome legislation of all the areas examined. There are general codes of conduct on issues such as money laundering. Private sector-initiated soft law, such as the Sullivan and McBride principles, offers companies the opportunity to anticipate binding and government-regulated legislation. * Arms control/disarmament In the field of arms control/disarmament, hard law is sometimes a soft law. Soft law is a way to reaffirm standards and strengthen the commitment of treaty members to comply with a particular treaty, which increases the pressure on members who have not ratified or complied with a binding agreement. Soft law is therefore often linked to hard law in arms control.
There is a network of obligations in these specific contracts, as soft law strengthens and enhances compliance. Professor Shelton concluded his presentation by highlighting some of the preliminary conclusions drawn by the ASIL project with regard to soft law. Professor Shelton divided the factors that influence compliance into three distinct categories: 1) Content; 2) Process; and (3) Institutions. The term soft law is used to refer to agreements, principles and declarations that are not legally binding. .