International Dispute Settlement
Course Level
intermediate - advanced / 3rd - 4th year
Course Language
English
Course Classification
This is a Themis course. It is also open to non-Themis students.
Teaching Mode
face-to-face [tbc]
ECTS-credits
5 (if course has been attended regularly and exam has been passed)
Frequency
This course will be taught at irregular intervals.
Contact Hours
This is an intensive course with class meetings on three entire Saturdays. [tbc]
Time Schedule and Course Venue
please see our electronic course catalogue
Course Content
How do States settle their disputes? When can they bring other States before international courts and tribunals – and when may these hear cases? How do proceedings in international fora look like? What are the effects of decisions rendered by international courts and tribunals? Do States follow them, can they be enforced, and can they have an impact even if they are not complied with?
These are some of the questions that the course will tackle. It will do so with a focus on the International Court of Justice (ICJ) but other international courts and tribunals will also be considered (such as ITLOS, the WTO DSB, and inter-State or mixed arbitration). We will discuss these issues based on landmark cases as well as recent and current proceedings, such as the Treaty of Amity case brought by Iran against the US or the Relocation of the US Embassy case (Palestine v US).
[to be updated]
Suggested Reading:
- Collier and Lowe, The Settlement of Disputes in International Law (OUP 1999).
- Crawford, Brownlie’s Principles of Public International Law (9th edn OUP 2019) pp. 669-716.
- Hernandez, International Law (OUP 2019) pp. 279 - 322.
- Merrills, International Dispute Settlement (6th edn CUP 2017).
- Pellet, ‘Peaceful Settlement of International Disputes’ in Wolfrum (ed), The Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law, available at:
http://opil.ouplaw.com/view/10.1093/law:epil/9780199231690/law-9780199231690-e70?rskey=y9kCQe&result=7&prd=EPIL (last visited: 18 December 2018)- Rosenne, ‘International Court of Justice (ICJ)’ in Wolfrum (ed), The Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law, available at:
http://opil.ouplaw.com/view/10.1093/law:epil/9780199231690/law-9780199231690-e34?rskey=UGE0id&result=2&prd=EPIL (last visited: 18 December 2018)- Hernandez, The International Court of Justice and the Judicial Function (OUP 2014).
- von Bogdandy and Venzke, In Whose Name? A Public Law Theory of International Adjudication (OUP 2014).
- Shany, Assessing the Effectiveness of International Courts (OUP 2016).
- Alter, The New Terrain of International Law: Courts, Politics, Rights (Princeton University Press 2014).
Further reading will be communicated to the participants ahead of each session.
[to be updated]
Restricted Enrollment
yes (that means that the number of participants is limited and that you might not get a place in this course)
Course Registration
Please sign up for this course under the module "Study Program for Exchange Students - Module 13".
registration period: 1 April 2025, 9 a.m. - 11 April 2025, 12 p.m. (noon)
In order to know if you have obtained a place in this course, please check out your course plan on Campus Management (tab "Stundenplan") from 12 April 2025.
As long as there are still seats available after the registration period has expired, they will be allocated according to the principle "first come, first served" if you sign up by 2 May 2025.
De-Registration from this Course
regular drop period: 1 April 2025, 9 a.m. - 2 May 2025, 12 a.m. (midnight)
After the regular drop period you can only drop this course with a valid cause until 14 days prior to the exam. Please contact the International Office at the Law Department if you have to use this option.
Type of Exam
oral presentation [tbc]
Exam Period
Presentations are going to take place throughout the whole course. [tbc]
Registration for the Exam
International exchange students will automatically be registered for the exam when they sign up for this course.
De-Registration from the Exam
Students who drop this course via Campus Management are automatically de-registered from the exam. Students who do not drop this course via Campus Management and do not take part any longer, are going to finish this course with a non-passing grade (0 points).
Grade Release