In 2005 the Committee of Legal Advisers on Public International Law (CAHDI) held two meetings in order to examine questions of public international law, to exchange and, if appropriate, to co-ordinate the views of member States at the request of the Committee of Ministers, Steering Committees and Ad Hoc Committees and on its own initiative.

The CAHDI continued to operate as a European Observatory of Reservations to International Treaties and to consider outstanding reservations to international treaties concluded within and outside the Council of Europe. Moreover, following the decision taken by the CAHDI at its 23rd meeting, the CAHDI pursued consideration of reservations to international treaties applicable to the fight against terrorism and updated the list of such reservations which could be possibly problematic.

Furthermore, the Committee held exchanges of views concerning the following issues: national implementation measures of UN sanctions, and respect for Human Rights; organization and functions of the Office of the Legal Adviser of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; current issues in the area of international humanitarian law, namely the 2nd Protocol to the Hague Convention on the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed conflict, and the International Committee of the Red Cross study on customary international humanitarian law; the UN Convention on jurisdiction immunities and its implications on the European Convention on State Immunities; peaceful settlement of disputes, namely the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and jurisdiction of the ICJ under other agreements, overlapping jurisdiction of international courts and tribunals. The CAHDI also considered developments concerning the International Criminal Court; implementation and functioning of the ad hoc criminal tribunals established by United Nations Security Council Resolutions 827 (1993) and 955 (1994); the activity of the International Law Commission (ILC) and developments concerning the fight against terrorism.In addition, the Committee was also informed on the proposals for a new procedure of notification of acts related to the Council of Europe's treaties.

The Committee finalised the Pilot-Project of the Council of Europe. It agreed that the information provided by delegations be published on the CAHDI website and that it be updated on regular basis.

The CAHDI held exchanges of views with Mr Badinter, President of the International Court of Conciliation and Arbitration within the OSCE and also with Mr Ferrari Bravo, a member of the Court's Bureau, Mr Rosas, judge of the Court of Justice of the European Communities, Professor Koskenniemi, member of the ILC and Mr Henckaerts of the ICRC.

The CAHDI adopted an opinion on Parliamentary Assembly Recommendation 1690 (2005) – The conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region dealt with by the OSCE Minsk Conference.