Is the Declaration Law? From Declaration to Covenants

The Universal Declaration was adopted as a General Assembly resolution, which does not bind states the way a treaty does. Its drafters intended it as a 'common standard of achievement', to be followed by binding agreements. Turning it into treaty law proved slow because of Cold War divisions.

In 1952 the General Assembly decided to prepare two covenants instead of one, and in 1966 it adopted the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; both entered into force in 1976 once enough states had ratified them. Together with the Declaration, they are often called the International Bill of Human Rights.

Many lawyers argue that some of the Declaration's principles, such as the bans on slavery and torture, have become customary international law binding on all states, though others are more cautious. The Declaration's legal status therefore depends on which provision is in question and how states have treated it over time.