Territorial disputes and international law: reclaiming the sui generis nature of arbitration

Abstract

This study aims to bridge the disciplinary gap between IR and international law in the study of conflict resolution by highlighting the sui generis nature of arbitration as a hybrid political-legal method of dispute settlement that has been lost over the years due to its overly judicialized application. It reclaims the unique nature of arbitration by demonstrating its capacity to enable state flexibility and autonomy which can be found in mediation, whilst providing a final and legally binding solution, which is commonly associated with adjudication. Utilizing the case study of the Beagle Channel arbitration between Chile and Argentina (1971–77), this study demonstrates that a key reason behind the general misuse and disuse of arbitration is the failure of states to capture its sui generis nature and instead adopt an overly judicialized approach.