International adjudication and autonomy

• Published in: International Organizations and the Idea of Autonomy pp. 160 - 177
• Main Author: Merrills, John
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 2011
• Edition: 1
• Subjects: Accountability; Autonomy; Institutionalism; Intergovernmental organizations; International governance; International law; International organizations; Legal systems; Philosophy of law; ICJ Statute; International Law; East Timor; International Court; Public International Law; Vice Versa; Constituent Instrument; Ius Cogens; International Human Rights Courts; Arbitral Tribunal; North Sea Continental Shelf Cases; Eritrea Ethiopia Claims Commission; Annex VII; EEC Treaty; Annex VII Tribunal; Northern Cameroons Case; International Litigation; Provisional Measures; Judicial Autonomy; WTO Appellate Body; EU Legal Order; International Judicial Institutions; International Adjudication; Exclusive Economic Zone; Judicial Organs
• ISBN: 0415859603; 9780415550888; 0415550882; 9780415859608
• DOI: 10.4324/9780203828090-12

In a project concerned with the idea of international organizations as autonomous entities it is natural enough to find courts and tribunals receiving their fair share of attention. Not only are international judicial institutions of various kinds now increasingly numerous but autonomy, as we shall see, can be regarded as one of the key features of adjudication internationally, as well as in the domestic arena. Autonomy is therefore well worth examining in this context. But what exactly do we mean by judicial autonomy? How is it manifested and what are its limitations? These questions are the subject of this chapter.