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There is also provision for Seabed Disputes Chamber of the Tribunal, which under article 187 of the Convention shall have jurisdiction with regard to matters concerning the Deep Seabed and the International Seabed Authority. [8]
There is a general obligation under article 279 for states to settle disputes by peaceful means, but they are able to choose methods other than those specified in the Convention.[9] States of European Community have agreed to submit fisheries disputes amongst member states to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) under the EEC Treaty. Outside the framework of the 1982 Convention, states may adopt a variety of means of resolving disputes,[10] ranging from negotiations, inquiries, conciliation, arbitration, and submission to the ICJ.
II. Consensual Settlement and Compulsory Settlement
The dispute settlement scheme under the 1982 Convention composes of two parts, say, the consensual settlement and the compulsory settlement.
Section 2 of Part XV of the 1982 Convention sets out the range of tribunals to be used under the compulsory settlement procedures that are commonly thought of as the essence of this dispute settlement scheme. However, it is important to recognize that those compulsory procedures are of secondary importance.[11] Section 1 (General Provisions) of Part XV of the 1982 Convention sets out the fundamental principles concerning dispute settlement.
First, States are obliged to settle their dispute by peaceful means of their own choice. When a dispute arises, there is an obligation to exchange views. The parties must “proceed expeditiously to an exchange of views regarding its settlement by negotiation or other peaceful means”. [12] The 1982 Convention respects the parties’ obligations under general, regional, or bilateral agreements to settle disputes. The parties are free to have recourse to any procedure they choose, judicial or non-judicial, although the 1982 Convention singles out the possibility of recourse to voluntary and non-binding conciliation for explicit mention.
If the parties to a dispute fail to reach a dispute through agreed procedure, one of them may invite the other to the conciliation settlement, which is elaborated in Annex V of the 1982 Convention. The essential feature of the conciliation is its non-binding nature, so it is not a perfect solution to the dispute in this sense. However, concerning sometimes or some countries are not willing to be bound, the 1982 Convention provides for multi-choices for the dispute settlement. This is the purpose of the conciliation procedure.[13]
If those efforts fail, the compulsory binding dispute settlement system comes into play. This system of compulsory settlement in fact is a system of the choice of procedures under Article 287 of the 1982 Convention. The Convention allows the parties, when signing, ratifying or acceding to it, to choose one or more of three different dispute settlement forums, and a fourth for certain subjects, as will be discussed below.
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