The South China Sea Arbitration

This book examines the South China Sea Arbitration between the Philippines and China, widely hailed as a landmark case in the law of the sea. Stefan Talmon argues that while the Tribunal assembled international lawyers of the highest repute and unrivalled experience, the case was nevertheless decided wrongly. He examines every step of the proceedings and critically engages with both the Philippines’ submissions and the Tribunal’s rulings. He finds that the Tribunal was lacking jurisdiction to decide the case, that some of the Philippines’ claims were also inadmissible, and that the Tribunal’s awards were tainted with procedural errors.

Stefan Talmon, D.Phil. (1996), University of Oxford, is Professor of Public Law, Public International Law and European Union Law at the University of Bonn and a Supernumerary Fellow of St. Anne’s College, Oxford. He practices as a Barrister from Twenty Essex, London.

"This is an interesting and thought-provoking book that...richly delivers on its promise to “critically engage” with both the Philippines’ submissions and the Tribunal’s rulings in one of the most high-profile cases of contemporary international law. In doing so, it relies on both old and new arguments, some of which seek to challenge widely-held conceptions on important issues relating to the law of the sea in general, and the South China Sea in particular, in ways that are likely to be intellectually uncomfortable for some readers. But perhaps it is time for lawyers (and governments) to become comfortable with being uncomfortable, in order to develop more rounded, robust, resilient solutions to some of the grand challenges of international law. In that respect, this book is a valuable addition to the discourse on the issues raised by the South China Sea Arbitration and provides an interesting counterpoint to much of the other literature on this topic."
Camille Goodman in Ocean Yearbook 38 (2023).

"Talmon’s The South China Sea Arbitration: Jurisdiction, Admissibility, Procedure is a well-researched and highly informative book that provides a valuable resource for scholars, policymakers, and anyone interested in the legal issues surrounding the South China Sea dispute. Talmon’s analysis is rigorous and insightful, and his writing is clear and concise, making the book accessible to a wide audience who want to seek a deeper understanding of the complexities of the South China Sea dispute and its legal implications."
Kuan-Hsiung Wang in Chinese (Taiwan) Yearbook of International Law and Affairs, Volume 40 (2023).

"On some questions, the book may change minds or set a high bar that opposing arguments must meet. At least in respect of some of the Philippines’ claims, Talmon makes a good case that there was not always a pre-existing legal dispute, although the forensic attention to every possible error made by the tribunal at times risks seeming tendentious. Overall, this book valuably provides a definitive statement of the case for China put at its highest."
Douglas Guilfoyle in Asian Journal of International Law (2023).

"There is no doubt that this book, together with the South China Sea Arbitration awards, will be studied by government legal advisers, scholars and students, for generations to come."
Yen-Chiang Chang in Chinese Journal of International Law (2023).