This module is not currently running in 2024 to 2025.
The legal regime applicable to two-thirds of our planet forms the subject matter of this course. Starting point is the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which entered into force in 1994, as well as its implementing agreements of 1994 and 1995. The objective of this course is to familiarize the student with this conventional framework and the delicate interaction it has with the actual practice of states.
Starting from the principle of the freedom of the high seas, this course will address the different maritime zones existing today, which all possess a distinct legal regime: the internal waters, the territorial sea, the contiguous zone, the exclusive economic zone, the continental shelf, the Area, and the high seas. Since all these maritime zones, in one way or another, fall back on the baseline for their measurement and often need to be delimited in case of adjacent or opposite states, introductory chapters on both issues are provided. Special attention is finally also devoted to marine pollution, the living resources of the high seas, two topical issues in the contemporary law of the sea, as well as the articles of the above-mentioned convention of 1982 on the settlement of disputes, because this was the first multilateral agreement which incorporated such a detailed procedure for the peaceful settlement of international disputes.
Total contact hours: 24
Private study hours: 176
Total study hours: 200
LLM in (Specialisation) - Brussels; PG Diploma in (Specialisation) - Brussels; PG Certificate in Law
Main assessment methods
Essay – no more than 5000 words (100%)
Reassessment methods
Reassessment Instrument: 100% coursework
Louis Sohn et al, Cases and Materials on the Law of the Sea (Martinus Nijhoff, 2nd ed., 2014).
Yoshifumi Tanaka, The International Law of the Sea (Cambridge UP, 2nd ed., 2015)
Donald Rothwell and Tim Stephens, The International Law of the Sea (Hart, 2nd ed., 2017)
See the library reading list for this module (Canterbury)
The intended subject specific learning outcomes.
On successfully completing the module students will be able to:
1. Demonstrate awareness of the significance of International Law in regulating the use of marine resources and the settlement of disputes
over these resources.
2. Demonstrate familiarity with the concepts, principles and rules of the International Law of the Sea
3. Demonstrate familiarity with current theoretical and doctrinal debates within the International Law of the Sea.
4. Apply international legal methods to international legal problems
5. Demonstrate familiarity with the operations of the institutions of International Law relevant to the seas.
The intended generic learning outcomes.
On successfully completing the module students will be able to:
1. Processing information: Students will be able to organise, source and digest large amounts of material from various sources
2. Analytical thought and writing: Students will be able to reflect upon complex ideas and arguments; digest, analyse and test scholarly views;
relate scholarly ideas and arguments to issues and circumstances in the contemporary global political economy; summarise and analyse
scholarly arguments in writing
3. Advocacy and defence: Students will be able to formulate an opinion in response to an issue or question, construct coherent and
persuasive arguments to advocate their view and defend that view against criticism
4. Communication and presentation skills: Students will be able to prepare oral and written presentations of information and viewpoints to
peers; respond to comment and criticism from peers; lead and manage group discussion
5. Problem-solving: Students will be able to respond at short notice to questions and challenges making use of knowledge, analytical tools
and perspectives acquired in the module
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