Dispute Settlement Mechanisms in International Agreements of the European Union

Abstract

This article attempts a systematisation of the types of dispute settlement mechanisms in EU international agreements, and it comments upon their most salient features from the perspective of EU law. All EU dispute settlement is peaceful dispute settlement. Within this type of dispute settlement, several categories can be distinguished: some EU international agreements contain no dispute settlement clause; some allow for the imposition of coercive measures such as sanctions; and most foresee the recourse to judicial or quasi-judicial avenues. In addition to judicial avenues in an independent court, EU international agreements in fact also include ‘softer’ mechanisms for consultation, mediation, or cooperation whereby the parties endeavour to reach a mutually agreed solution for solving any dispute before recurring to judicial avenues. This article suggests possible taxonomies of judicial or quasi-judicial mechanisms based on the body in charge of setting the dispute, on the procedure and on the subject matter, and it identifies common patterns in the inclusion of these forms of dispute settlement in EU international agreements.