Commentary on the Hague Principles on Ethical Standards for Counsel Appearing before International Courts and Tribunals

Abstract

The recent increase in the number of international tribunals, and in their caseloads, has brought to the forefront the role and tasks of international counsel, and the need to address ethical issues and codes of conduct concerning advocacy before these tribunals. In the absence of a common set of principles applicable to all international tribunals to provide guidance to counsel on ethical matters, including issues of conflict of interest, the ILA Study Group on the Practice and Procedure of International Tribunals embarked on a study on the ethical standards for counsel appearing before international courts and tribunals which resulted in “the Hague Principles”. In developing the Hague Principles, the aim of the Study Group was to elaborate a set of guidelines to assist specific tribunals in developing their own codes of conduct, and to provide guidance to counsel on main issues and problems relating to professional conduct before international tribunals. Based on its review of the literature and existing codes of conduct for some of the international courts and tribunals, as well as the experience and views of its members and advisors, the Study Group has identified a set of clear principles that concentrate on the core of the ethical issues, and in particular, on the independence of international counsel and conflict of interest issues.