This guide lists print and online resources for researching treaties to which the United States is a party. A separate research guide on World Treaties lists resources for researching treaties to which the United States may not be a party. There are two different research guides because different indexes, finding guides, and databases are useful to find treaty text and treaty status depending upon whether or not the U.S. is likely to be a party.
If you have questions about treaty research -- U.S. or not, current or historical -- the Mabie Reference Librarians will be happy to help: 408 554-4452; lawref@scu.edu.
These are Official U.S. Treaty Sources listed in the Bluebook (Table T4):
United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (UST), 1950 -
Law Stacks, Second Floor KZ 235.3 U55
This is the current official publication for United States treaties. It cumulates the consecutively numbered, individually paginated pamphlets first published in the Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS). The most recent print volume in UST contained treaties from 1984.
Statutes at Large (Stat.), 1778 - 1949
Law Stacks, First Floor KF50
Statutes at Large was the official publication for United States treaties before UST. Volume 8, Part 2, of Statutes at Large contains a compilation of treaties entered into between 1778 and 1845. Volume 64, Part 3, contains a cumulative index of all treaties and agreements published in Statutes at Large.
Treaties and Other International Acts Series (TIAS),1945 -
Law Microforms: KZ 235.32 U55
These are official slip treaties which are later cumulated in bound volumes and published as United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (UST). TIAS replaced the Treaty Series and Executive Agreement Series (below). The last TIAS pamphlet received by the Mabie Law Library is No. 10981.
Treaty Series, 1778 - 1945
Selected Treaty Series documents are available in the Mabie Law Library in microfiche.
Executive Agreement Series, 1922 - 1945
United States Senate, Treaty Documents, 1981 -
Law Microforms KF49 .C62 (CIS microfiche)
Ask for help at the reference desk if you have difficulty using the CIS Index-Abstract volumes in Law Microform Reference or the Proquest Congressional database to locate treaties or treaty documents.
Senate Executive Documents, 1778 - 1980
Treaties to which the United States is a party are also found in the following sources:
Lexis and Westlaw U.S. Treaties Databases
Hein’s United States Treaties and Other International Agreements: Current Service (KAV), 1989 -
Law Microforms KZ 235.3 H44
United States Code Service (U.S.C.S.)
Law Stacks, First Floor KF62 L38
United States Code Annotated (U.S.C.A.)
Law Stacks, First Floor KF62 W4
See also Historical Treaty Series, listed in this Research Guide.