1A. Members’ Rights and Obligations Under the IMF’s Articles of Agreement: The Role of Practice in the Interpretation of an Organization’s Charter

Abstract

The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the Inter-American Investment Corporation have their own charters, which determine their mandates. Each one of them has developed a practice in the interpretation and implementation of its charter, and a student of these organizations will not have a real insight into their operation unless he or she has a thorough knowledge of their practice. Obviously, the same thing can be said about any legal system. A reading of a country’s constitution, laws, and regulations may give an approximate idea of that country’s legal system, but it is by no means sufficient; in most countries, whether they belong to the common law or the civil law tradition, the interpretations given by the courts are an integral part of the country’s legal system.

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