State Succession Index is the original index based on extensive in-house research and open-source online data. This is done using reliable publicly available information, including but not limited to, government resources, international organisation and court decisions, self-determination group statements and actions and major news outlets. This research process is ongoing throughout the year and coupled with a rigorous monitoring to pick up relevant events and processes which lead to state succession.
The Index uses indicators to measure levels state succession as territorial dispute, sovereignty change, governance transition, international recognition, legal succession and continuity, and the scale of possible disruption of international arrangements. The values for each indicator are assessed for each state or territory, scaled, and ranked. The top-ranked states or territories overall are experiencing state succession or events that lead to state succession with the most complex and difficult-to-resolve legal, political, commercial, financial, and diplomatic consequences and effects.