Situating Contingency in the Path of International Law

This introduction situates thinking about contingency on the field of what is possible, bounded by necessity, on one side, and chance on the other. It shows what makes the search for contingency in the course of international law so politically charged and so valuable—its link with human freedom. Expanding on the agenda behind the present volume, the chapter discusses how searching for contingency might facilitate change in the present for a different future. In contrast to other projects, asking about past possibilities offers an account for why something that may seem desirable has not materialised. Such an account must guide those on pathways of transformation in their sobering search for change. What would actually have made a difference in the course of international law, and what still can? Overall, the chapter highlights three sites of contingency: in the law’s contextualisation; the reading of its context; and the rendering of its history.