Settlement of Disputes
This section provides a brief summary of the provisions associated with the settlement of disputes in the BBNJ Treaty
What are the BBNJ Treaty's requirement for the Parties to settle disputes associated with the Treaty?
The BBNJ Treaty requires that the Parties cooperate to prevent disputes and also, to settle disputes by peaceful means. As for the specific means, the Parties have a wide range of options, including negotiation, inquiry, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement, resort to regional agencies or arrangement or any other peaceful means of their own choice.
Ref. BBNJ Treaty Art. 56 through 58.
Are there special considerations for disputes on a technical matter?
Yes. A dispute on a technical nature may refer to an ad hoc expert panel established by the parties to the dispute, and such panel will endeavor to resolve the dispute expeditiously without recourse to binding procedures of dispute settlement.
Ref. BBNJ Treaty Art. 59.
Are there binding dispute settlement procedures under the BBNJ Treaty?
Yes. The BBNJ Treaty provides two separate binding dispute settlement procedures: for a Party to the United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and for those not a Party to UNCLOS.
The BBNJ Treaty ensures that the dispute settlement provisions do not prejudice other settlement of disputes procedures that the Parties have agreed to, as participants in a relevant legal insturment or framework, or as a member of a relevant global, regional, subregional or sectoral body concerning the interpretation and application of such instruments and frameworks. The BBNJ Treaty also states that the dispute settlement provisions do not confer jurisdiction upon a court or tribunal over any disputes that involve matters of sovereignty, sovereign rights or jurisdiction over land or maritime areas.
The BBNJ Treaty requires that pending a settlement, the parties to the dispute make every effort to enter into provisional arrangements of a practical nature.
Ref. BBNJ Treaty Art. 60 and 61.
