The Arbitral Tribunal Sets Further Proceedings

The Arbitral Tribunal in the case brought by the Republic of the Philippines against the People’s Republic of China under Annex VII to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (“the Convention”), has issued its second Procedural Order, establishing the next steps in the timetable for the arbitration. This follows the second meeting of the Members of the Arbitral Tribunal, held at the Peace Palace in The Hague on 14 and 15 May 2014.

In accordance with the Tribunal’s first Procedural Order dated 27 August 2013, the Philippines filed its Memorial on 30 March 2014, addressing matters relating to the jurisdiction of the Arbitral Tribunal, the admissibility of the Philippines’ claim, as well as the merits of the dispute. In Procedural Order No. 2, the Arbitral Tribunal fixes 15 December 2014 as the date for China to submit its Counter-Memorial responding to the Philippines’ Memorial. The Arbitral Tribunal will determine the further course of the proceedings, including the need for, and scheduling of any other written submissions and hearings, at an appropriate later stage, after seeking the views of the Parties.

The Arbitral Tribunal has been mindful of its obligation under the Convention to determine its own procedure while “assuring to each party a full opportunity to be heard and to present its case.” Before adopting Procedural Order No. 2, the Arbitral Tribunal provided to each Party the opportunity to comment on scheduling and a draft of Procedural Order No. 2. On 29 May 2014, the Philippines submitted comments. On 21 May 2014, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) received a Note Verbale from China in which it reiterated its position that “it does not accept the arbitration initiated by the Philippines” and that the Note Verbale “shall not be regarded as China’s acceptance of or participation in the proceedings.”