Public Law Studies Quarterly

Mixed Disputes under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea With A Focus on the South China Sea Arbitration

Document Type : Article

Authors

Masoumeh Abbasi 1
Ahmad Momenirad 2

1 Ph.D. student of Public International Law, school of law and political science, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

2 Associate Professor, public Law, Faculty of Law and Political Science,Tehran University,Tehran,Iran.

https://doi.org/10.22059/jplsq.2023.349819.3199
Abstract
In the international dispute settlement system under the law of the sea, based on Part XV of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), mixed disputes arise when disagreements over the interpretation or application of the Convention’s provisions are intertwined with territorial disputes. This intertwinement creates a multi-layered dispute that must be addressed from multiple perspectives. Given that territorial sovereignty falls outside the scope of the 1982 Convention, the question arises as to how mixed disputes can be resolved through the competent bodies established under the Convention. In the case of the Philippines v. China, submitted to arbitration under Annex VII, China argued that the dispute concerned territorial sovereignty, which lies outside the scope of the Convention. In contrast, the Philippines maintained that the dispute was multi-layered and that adjudicating its claims did not necessitate addressing territorial sovereignty. Furthermore, the prohibition on addressing one aspect of the dispute does not imply that the tribunal lacks jurisdiction over other aspects. The purpose of this study is to examine mixed disputes and the criteria used by the tribunal in establishing its jurisdiction in the Philippines v. China case with respect to such disputes. The research employs a descriptive-analytical methodology relying on library-based sources.

Keywords

mixed dispute
international law
1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea
jurisdiction
arbitration tribunal
Subjects

  1. English

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Public Law Studies Quarterly
Volume 55, Issue 4 - Serial Number 44
Winter 2026
Winter 2026
Pages 2371-2394

  • Receive Date 20 October 2022
  • Revise Date 24 April 2023
  • Accept Date 26 June 2023

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