This chapter examines the meaning of international legal personality and the range of actors that possess such personality; namely, States, international organizations, individuals, multinational corporations, and several other non-State actors. Given the centrality of States, the criteria for statehood are analysed, and both traditional and contemporary criteria are discussed. Article 1 of the 1933 Montevideo Convention is used for assessment of whether an entity satisfies these criteria, which include: permanent population, a defined territory, government, capacity to enter into foreign relations, and the relevance of human rights. Competing theories regarding the role of recognition by third States as an element of statehood are also considered. Equally, the rights and duties of non-State actors are analysed in terms of capacity conferred upon them under international law.
