The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Montego Bay, 10 December 1982), UNCLOS, is intended to govern the use of oceans for fishing, shipping, exploration, navigating and mining. The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea is the most comprehensive treaty in public international law and covers a range of Law of the Sea topics, such as delimitation of maritime boundaries, maritime zones, marine environment protection, marine scientific research, piracy and many more. Part XI UNCLOS on the legal regime on deep seabed mining used to be a main obstacle for ratification by Western states and blocked the entry into force of the UNCLOS as a whole. After more specific regulations in the 1994 Agreement relating to the implementation of Part XI of UNCLOS about the commercial exploitation of the deep seabed, more countries were willing to ratify and UNCLOS entered into force in 1994. Although the United States now recognizes the UNCLOS as a codification of customary international law, the US has not yet ratified it.
This Research Guide is intended as a starting point for research on the Law of the Sea. It provides the basic legal materials available in the Peace Palace Library, both in print and electronic format. Handbooks, leading articles, bibliographies, periodicals, serial publications and documents of interest are presented in the Selective Bibliography section. Links to the PPL Catalogue are inserted. The Library’s classification index code 96. Law of the Sea and subject headings (keywords) Law of the Sea and UN Convention on the Law of the Sea UNCLOS are instrumental for searching through the Catalogue.
Special attention is given to our subscriptions on databases, e-journals, e-books and other electronic resources. Finally, this Research Guide features links to relevant websites and other online resources of particular interest.
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The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea has been frequently referred to as the ‘constitution for the oceans’ and as one of the most important events in the history of modern international law. A detailed dispute settlement system represents a significant achievement of the Convention, an aspect on which Dispute Resolution in the Law of the Sea focuses. The book aims at examining the resolution of disputes which have emerged since the Convention’s entry into force and at analyzing the role of compulsory procedures entailing binding decisions through the prism of general international law and jurisprudence.
KARAMAN, I.V., 2012Also available as Fulltext e-book inside Peace Palace Library
Also available as Fulltext e-book inside Peace Palace Library
It is now more than ten years since the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC) came into force, and more than twenty years since it was concluded in December of 1982, after more than nine years of negotiations. The famous ‘package deal’ that it represented addressed many of the problematic issues which previous conventions had been unable to settle. This collection of essays by academics and practitioners provides a critical review of the LOSC and its relationship to, and interface with, the wide range of developments which have occurred since 1982.
FREESTONE, D., BARNES, R. and ONG, D., 2006Also available as Fulltext e-book inside Peace Palace Library
This book analyzes the evolving rules governing freedom of the seas and their impact on expeditionary operations in the littoral, near-shore coastal zone. Coastal state practice and international law are developing in ways that restrict naval access to the littorals and associated coastal communities and inshore regions that have become the fulcrum of world geopolitics.
KRASKA, J., 2011Also available as Fulltext e-book inside Peace Palace Library
Thirty-four experts on marine affairs and the law of the sea, from six continents, examine the emerging challenges for our World Ocean. The accumulating consequences of human activities on the seas indicate that the Earth may already have entered a new epoch, the Anthropocene, dominated by the human impact. This volume analyses developments in the interface of law, technology and science in some central law-of-the-sea issue areas. These are explored systematically in sections on the World Ocean in the Anthropocene epoch (Part I); combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (Part II);… read more combating illegal oil spills from ships (Part III); marine genetic resources and bioprospecting (Part IV); and the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines (Part V).
VIDAS, D. (ed.), 2010Also available as Fulltext e-book inside Peace Palace Library
Drawing on papers presented at Trinity College, Dublin, in 2010, Selected Contemporary Issues in the Law of the Sea provides a cohesive discussion on various challenges involved with the law of the sea. International experts cover topics such as straight baselines, high seas/EEZ jurisdiction, the definition of, and jurisdiction over, piracy and submissions to the CLCS relating to outer continental shelf claims in disputed areas.
SYMMONS, C.R. (ed.), 2011Also available as Fulltext e-book inside Peace Palace Library
Freedom of the seas and passage rights is a highly topical subject for the international community that cuts across a broad spectrum of scholarly disciplines and maritime operations. The contents of the book include in-depth analysis of current international and regional approaches to freedom of navigation, transit passage through straits used for international navigation, archipelagic sea lanes passage, scientific research and hydrographic surveys in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), military surveys in the EEZ, as well as vessel source pollution and protection of the marine environment.
NORDQUIST, M.H., KOH, T.B. and MOORE, J.N., 2009Also available as Fulltext e-book inside Peace Palace Library
This book aims to fill a gap in the existing literature by exploring the role of African states in the development of the regime of the deep seabed beyond national jurisdiction (“the Area”) and the concept of the Common Heritage of Mankind (CHM), a relatively novel concept in international law and politics. In so doing, it places African states’ contributions to the evolution and development of the Area and the CHM in the context of vital historical, social, political and economic factors influencing African States’ attitude to the regime and concept.
EGEDE, E., 2011Also available as Fulltext e-book inside Peace Palace Library
States and entrepreneurs are becoming increasingly interested in the economic potential of ocean areas beyond the national jurisdiction of coastal States, namely the high seas and the Area. This has led to growing support within the international community to enhance the international legal regime for those areas, among other things to protect and preserve the environment and biodiversity. However, the current debate in international fora indicates that States have widely different interpretations on key aspects of this regime. For instance, what implications do the principles contained in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea have for the governance and regulation of these areas, how is access to natural resources best regulated, how are benefits derived from these areas to be distributed and which specific institutional frameworks should be employed in the management of areas beyond national jurisdiction?
OUDE ELFERINK, A.G. and MOLENAAR, E.J. (eds.), 2010Compared with other regions on the planet, the Arctic is warming faster. More of the Arctic is free of ice for longer periods. The possibilities for exploitation of natural resources and for control over Northern shipping lanes have prompted countries’ renewed interest in their competing claims to the region. Recently, Denmark (for Greenland) and Canada have clashed over their claims to a small, barren rock known as Hans Island.
Read moreEstablishing an authoritative definition of “piracy” in international law has always been rather problematic. The definition is relevant, because any confusion in terminology invariably leads to debates between State sovereignty and universal jurisdiction over crimes at sea. The various international law meanings of piracy are derived from, among others, international treaties, and various municipal law meanings are defined by statutes and State practice.
Read moreSolving the problem of marine debris and plastic pollution in the World’s oceans is a very complex and challenging enterprise. In particular, its legal framework. Various international and regional instruments, domestic and local laws and regulations apply directly or indirectly to marine debris pollution. The conspicuously global nature of this problem indicates that a potential role of significance is reserved for international environmental law. However, not all international and regional instruments are legally binding, and not all have a strong focus on marine debris and plastic pollution.
Read moreGrotius’ theory on the Freedom of the Sea might help Slovenia in the dispute with Croatia over a small bay in the Adriatic. Since their independence from Yuogoslavia in 1991 they quarrel over the territorial sea delimitation in the Bay of Piran. Croatia claims that the border should be drawn in the middle of the bay, which would deny Slovenian ships direct access to the high sea…
Read moreIn Murmansk on Wednesday 15th September 2010 Norway and the Russian Federation signed a treaty concerning the maritime delimitation and cooperation in the Barents Sea and the Arctic Ocean. The disputed territory covered 175,000 square km (67,600 sq miles), an area mainly in the Barents Sea between proven petroleum reserves on the Russian and Norwegian sides.
Read moreOn monday, June 21 2010, prof. mr. A.H.A. Soons (Utrecht university) will give a lecture on the ‘Law of the Sea‘. The topics will be international maritime law in general and specific issues like piracy, overfishing and Japanese whaling. Professor Soons will also speak on disputes that states had to claim marine areas. The lecture [...]
Read moreTensions between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the Falkland Islands came to a boiling point when the UK announced plans to begin offshore oil drilling near the remote islands in February 2010. This blog will briefly discuss this complicated dispute as well as the actions taken by both parties in the United Nations General Assembly.
Read moreCelebration of the 400th anniversary of Grotius’ famous book “Mare Liberum”.
Highlight was the presentation of the first copy of a new English translation of Mare Liberum “ Hugo Grotius Mare liberum 1609-2009. Original Latin and English Translation”. Edited and annotated by Robert Feenstra, General Introduction by Jeroen Vervliet. Leiden : Brill 2009. ISBN 9789004177017.
The concept of passage is defined in article 18 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Montego Bay, 1982) as ‘continious and expeditious’ navigation through the territorial sea from and to any other sea zone. The passage, to be characterised as innocent, must not be prejudicial to the peace, good order and security of the coastal state (article 19 UNCLOS III).
Article 30 UNCLOS III states that ‘If any warship does not comply with the laws and regulations of the coastal State concerning passage through the territorial sea and disregards any request for compliance therewith which is made to it, the coastal State may require it to leave the territorial sea immediately.’
Read moreThe Hague celebrates the 400th anniversary of the publication of Hugo Grotius’ Mare Liberum (Leiden, Publishing House of Elsevier) with an extensive program of activities. It commemmorates the fact that Grotius wrote his book in The Hague with exhibitions, theater/musical plays, films, publications and lectures in museums and libraries.
Read moreArchaeological sites in international waters are numerous and still largely untouched. With the development of sophisticated technology for the search and recovery of shipwrecks on the ocean floor, however, issues of ownership, preservation, and cultural property rights have achieved increasing prominance. In particular, after the discovery of RMS Titanic in 1985 the debate among marine archaeologists, cultural rights proponents and commercial salvage companies about treasure hunting in international waters has intensified.
Read moreThe Mare Liberum Case Case concerning sovereignty over Abundantia Ridge and other matters. Rosmarus v Urusus.
From 16 – 18 April 2009 the 32nd Telders International Law Moot Court Competition will be held at the Peace Palace in The Hague. The Telders Moot Court Competition could be considered the most prestigious and important [...]
Read moreOn Tuesday 3 February 2009 the International Court of Justice (ICJ) rendered its Judgment in the case concerning Maritime Delimitation in the Black Sea (Romania v. Ukraine). A public sitting took place at 10 a.m. at the Peace Palace in The Hague, during which the President of the Court, Judge Rosalyn Higgins, read the Court’s [...]
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The Outer Limits of the Continental Shelf : Legal Aspects of Their Establishment / , 2008
Selected Contemporary Issues in the Law of the Sea / , 2011
The Law of the Sea / , 2006
New directions in the law of the sea: global developments / comp. and ed. by Roy S. Lee, Moritaka Hayashi / , 1996-1999
A Handbook on the New Law of the Sea / , 1991
Decisions of the World Court relevant to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea : a reference guide / , 2010
