Overview

Governance of International Courts and Tribunals presents the first systematic examination of the institutions, practices, and norms that constitute international judicial governance—the oversight exercised by states and international organisations over international courts and tribunals to ensure their independent, accountable, and effective functioning. Departing from the traditional focus on courts' mandates, jurisprudence, and procedures, the book turns attention to international judicial governance institutions (what the book terms 'injugovins')—the political and executive bodies, such as organs of international organisations or dedicated governance bodies, responsible for overseeing courts. It explores their practices and the normative frameworks that guide them. Injugovins are revealed as crucial yet long-overlooked actors in the international adjudicative landscape. Their performance shapes the entire life cycle of courts—from the adoption of constituent instruments to budgeting, appointments, accountability mechanisms, institutional reform, enforcement, and closure. Many of the challenges faced by courts, including legitimacy crises, limited effectiveness, and political backlash, often stem from, or are worsened by, governance shortcomings. Addressing a long-standing gap in the literature, the volume develops a shared vocabulary and conceptual framework for understanding international judicial governance as a distinct domain of international institutional law and practice. Comprising 24 contributions, it combines conceptual analysis, regime-specific studies, and cross-cutting functional perspectives. It maps historical and contemporary governance models—including those of the PCIJ, ICJ, CJEU, ICC, and African regional courts—and examines key functions such as judicial elections, financial oversight, and enforcement. With empirical depth and analytical clarity, this volume lays the foundations for future research on the legitimacy, oversight, and effectiveness of international courts.

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9780198922131

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Sergey Vasiliev is Professor of International Law at the Open University of the Netherlands, a position he has held since 2024. He previously served as Associate Professor (2020-24) and Assistant Professor (2019-20) at the Amsterdam Law School, where he was also the founding Director of the Amsterdam Center of Criminal Justice and Academic Director of the LLM in International Criminal Law. His publications focus on international criminal law and the institutional and governance aspects of international adjudication. Vasiliev is a member of the authors' team of the leading textbook An Introduction to International Criminal Law and Procedure (5th edn, Cambridge University Press, 2024). Niels Blokker is Professor Emeritus of International Institutional Law at Leiden Law School. Appointed to the 'Schermers Chair' in 2003, he has held a full-time appointment since August 2013. From 2000 to 2013, he worked at the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Senior Legal Counsel and, from 2007, as Deputy Legal Adviser. Blokker is one of the world's leading experts in international institutional law and has published extensively in this field, including the standard reference work co-authored with the late Henry G. Schermers (7th rev edn, 2025). He is co-founder and Co-Editor-in-Chief of International Organizations Law Review.

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