With the entry into force of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in 1994, the Law of the Sea Tribunal was established. The Tribunal may hear any dispute concerning the application or interpretation of UNCLOS, except as otherwise provided in the Convention. Its jurisdiction also extends to disputes concerning the interpretation or application of other agreements related to the purposes of UNCLOS that are submitted to the Tribunal in accordance with the other agreements. In deciding cases, the Tribunal applies the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other rules of international law not incompatible with the Convention. The Tribunal is competent for disputes arising between the following entities:
- States Parties;
- State enterprises, natural persons, or legal or judicial persons that are sponsored by States Parties and carrying out activities in the “Area” (namely, the seabed, ocean floor, and subsoil thereof lying beyond the limits of national jurisdiction); and
- the “Authority” (which is the organization through which States organise and control activities in the Area) or the “Enterprise” (which is the organ of the Authority that carries out activities in the Area as well as the transporting, processing, and marketing of minerals recovered from the Area).
Alongside the Seabed Dispute Chamber, which has jurisdiction in disputes regarding activities in the Area, the Tribunal may form such chambers, composed of three or more of its elected members, as it considers necessary for dealing with particular categories of disputes.
For more information, contact itlos@itlos.org or see http://www.itlos.org/start2_en.html and http://www.un.org
/Depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/closindx.htm