John Noyes
Roger J. Traynor Emeritus Professor
Biography
John E. Noyes, Roger J. Traynor Professor of Law Emeritus, is a graduate of Amherst College (Phi Beta Kappa) and the University of Virginia School of Law. At California Western, he regularly taught International Law, Law of the Sea, Conflict of Laws, and Torts. During his career, he was also a visiting professor at Connecticut, Roger Williams, Suffolk, Wake Forest, Victoria University (Wellington, New Zealand), and the University of San Diego Oxford and Paris programs. Professor Noyes’s work with various international law organizations included service as President of the American Branch of the International Law Association and as Chair of the AALS Section of International Law. He received the American Branch’s Charles Siegal Distinguished Service Award and the American Bar Association Section of International Law’s Outstanding Service Award. He has written scores of book chapters and law review articles, focusing especially on the international law of the sea and international dispute resolution. Among his several books are International Law Stories (Foundation Press, 2d ed. 2025) (with Dickinson, Janis, and Vázquez), International Law Cases and Commentary (West Academic, 7th ed. 2025) (with Janis and Sadat), International Law and International Relations (West Academic, 2018) (with Janis), Cases and Materials on the Law of the Sea (Brill, 2d ed. 2014) (with Franckx and Juras), and Law of the Sea in a Nutshell (Thomson/West, 2d ed. 2010) (with Franckx, Juras, and Sohn).
J.D. University of Virginia
B.A. Amherst College [magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, history]
Torts I
Conflict of Laws
International Law
Law of the Sea
Publications
Books
- John E. Noyes, Cases and Commentary on International Law (7th ed. Forthcoming)
Links, if you’re interested, are here: https://faculty.westacademic.com/Book/Detail/347221 and here: https://www.amazon.com/International-Law-Stories-John-Noyes/dp/1647086361
- Mark W. Janis & John E. Noyes, Cases and Commentary on International Law (5th ed. 2014) (including a teacher’s manual).
- John Noyes, Kristen Juras & Erik Franckx, Cases and Materials on the Law of the Sea (2d ed. 2014).
- Mark W. Janis & John E. Noyes, Cases and Commentary on International Law (4th ed. 2011) (including a teacher’s manual).
- Louis B. Sohn, Kristen Gustafson Juras, John E. Noyes & Erik Franckx, Law of the Sea in a Nutshell (2d ed. 2010).
- International Law Stories (John E Noyes et al. eds., 2007).
Book Chapters
- John E. Noyes, The Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone, in Oxford Handbook of the Law of the Sea 91 (Donald Rothwell et al. eds., 2015).
- John E. Noyes, Memorializing UNCLOS III, Interpreting the Law of the Sea Convention, and the Virginia Commentary, in Peaceful Order in the World's Oceans: Essays in Honor of Satya N. Nandan 218 (Myron Nordquist & Michael Lodge eds., 2014).
- John E. Noyes, The Common Heritage of Mankind: Past, Present, and Future, in Perspectives on International Law in an Era of Change 447 (Anjali Nanda & Alissa Mundt eds., 2012).
- John E. Noyes, Ships in Distress, in 9 Max Planck Encyclopedia of Pub. Int’l Law 17 (Rüdiger Wolfrum ed., 2012).
- John E. Noyes, Taft Arbitration Treaties (1911), in 9 Max Planck Encyclopedia of Pub. Int’l Law 743 (Rüdiger Wolfrum ed., 2012).
- John E. Noyes, Interpreting the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention and Defining Its Terms, in Definitions for the Law of the Sea: Terms Not Defined by the 1982 Convention 45 (George K. Walker ed., 2011).
- John E. Noyes, Unit Self-Defense at Sea: Views from the United States and the International Court of Justice, in The Exercise of Jurisdiction over Vessels: New Developments in the Fields of Pollution, Fisheries, Crimes at Sea and Trafficking of Weapons of Mass Destruction 185 (Erik Franckx & Philippe Gautier eds., 2010).
- John E. Noyes, Territorial Sea, in 4 The Oxford Encyclopedia of Maritime History 125 (John B. Hattendorf ed., 2007).
- John E. Noyes, The Caroline: International Law Limits on Resort to Force, in International Law Stories 263 (John E. Noyes et al. eds., 2007).
Book Review Essays
- John E. Noyes, Book Review, Am J. Int'l Law (forthcoming 2015) (reviewing Hugh Thirlway, The Sources of International Law (2014)).
- John E. Noyes, Book Review, Am J. Int'l Law 191 (2012) (reviewing The Oceans in the Nuclear Age (David D. Caron & Harry N. Scheiber eds., 2010)).
Law Review Articles
- John E. Noyes, The Law of the Sea Convention and the United State of America, Revue Belge de Droit International (forthcoming 2015).
- John E. Noyes, The Common Heritage of Mankind: Past, Present, and Future, 40 Denv. J. Int’l L. & Pol’y 447 (2012).
- John E. Noyes, William Howard Taft and the Taft Arbitration Treaties, 56 Vill. L. Rev. 535 (2011).
- John E. Noyes, Judicial and Arbitral Proceedings and the Outer Limits of the Continental Shelf, 42 Vand. J. Transnat’l L. 1211 (2009).
- John E. Noyes, The United States and the Law of the Sea Convention: U.S. Views Concerning the Settlement of International Law Disputes in International Tribunals and U.S. Courts, 1 Berkeley J. Int’l L. Publicist 27 (2009), http://bjil.typepad.com/publicist/2009/03/publicist01-noyes.html.
- John E. Noyes, Justice Roger Traynor Professorship Acceptance, 39 Cal. W. Int’l L.J. 384 (2009).
- John E. Noyes, Louis B. Sohn and the Law of the Sea, 16 Willamette J. Int’l L. & Disp. Resol. 238 (2008).
- John E. Noyes, Places of Refuge for Ships, 37 Denv. J. Int’l L. & Pol’y 135 (2008).
- John E. Noyes, U.S. Policy and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 39 Geo. Wash. Int’l L. Rev. 621 (2007).
- John E. Noyes, Definitions for the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention and the Importance of Context: “Ships” and Other Matters, 2007-2008 Proc. Am. Branch Int’l L. Ass’n 114, revised and reprinted in 2009-2010 Proc. Am. Branch Int’l L. Ass’n 240.
- John E. Noyes, Treaty Interpretation and Definitions in the Law of the Sea Convention, 2007-2008 Proc. Am. Branch Int’l L. Ass’n 94, revised and reprinted in 2009-2010 Proc. Am. Branch Int’l L. Ass’n 219.