International environmental law - Definition

International environmental law is the body of international law that concerns the protection of the global environment.

There have been many legally-binding international agreements concerning the protection of the environment, but in this area of international law soft law is more common than normal.

Some basic principles of international environmental law are:

• the precautionary principle
• the polluter pays principle
• the principle of sustainable development

Important cases have included the various nuclear test cases (New Zealand vs. France) before the International Court of Justice.