Functions of international litigation

This chapter gives an overview of the different functions of international courts and tribunals. It first looks at how international courts and tribunals can authoritatively determine the law and discusses where the limits are to this function. It then looks at dispute settlement, which can be considered as the core function of international litigation. It also looks at how international courts and tribunals view the public interest, a function that is particularly prominent in environmental disputes. In doing so, it also reminds us that international courts and tribunals do not work in a political vacuum; political factors can constrain their legal actions across the procedural phases of a dispute.