International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea

The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea is an intergovernmental organization created by the mandate of the United Nations. It was established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, signed at Montego Bay, Jamaica, on December 10, 1982. It went into effect on November 16, 1994, and established an international framework for law over "all ocean space, its uses and resources". The Tribunal delegated responsibility for the seabed to the International Seabed Authority, and retained authority over "territorial sea[s], the contiguous zone[s], the continental shelf[s], the exclusive economic zone[s] and the high seas." The Tribunal has the power to settle disputes between member states (there are currently 148), including arbitration.

Composition

According to its founding statute, the Tribunal has a set of 21 rotating judges from a variety of member states in three primary bodies:

• The Chamber of Summary Procedure
• The Chamber for Fisheries Disputes
• The Chamber for Marine Environment Disputes

In addition, at the request of Chile and the European Community, the Tribunal has also formed a special chamber to deal with the case concerning the Conservation and Sustainable Exploitation of Swordfish Stocks in the South-Eastern Pacific Ocean (Chile/European Community).

It is seated in Hamburg, Germany.

External link

Official Site