Review of Literature on the Legal Status of Maritime Features in the Merits Award of the South China Sea Arbitration

XU Qi ； CHEN Jueyu ； HAN Yuchen ； HUANG Rui ； HUANG Yuxin

《中华海洋法学评论》 40期 (2021/12) Pp. 101-137

摘要

One of the eye-catching focuses of the Merits Award of the South China Sea (SCS) Arbitration is the legal status and maritime entitlements of disputed maritime features in the SCS. This review examines the English academic literature from 2016 to 2021, pays particular attention to the Tribunal's Award under the interpretation and application of Article 121 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and summarizes extensive discussions among international and domestic scholars. This paper focuses on the content of the Award and its legal impacts. On the one hand, it reviews the academic literature on the interpretation and application of Article 121 of UNCLOS, on the other hand, it reviews the academic literature on potential legal impacts of the Award. This review indicates that the Award on the legal status and maritime entitlements of disputed maritime features are very controversial, and many scholars consider that the reasoning and conclusion of the final ruling are flawed, and express their concerns about potential negative influences of the Award.

關鍵字

The South China Sea Arbitration ； Merits Award ； Legal status ； Maritime ； Entitlement ； Literature review