This workshop —organised under the SNF funded-project ‘Diversity on the International Bench: Building Legitimacy for International Courts and Tribunals’— aims to critically rethink the concept of representation in international courts and tribunals. The goal is to explore what representation means in international law, how the concept of representation applies to different international courts and tribunals, and in which ways it can transform existing institutions and make them more democratic and inclusive. These questions are framed against the possibility that a richer understanding of representation has the potential to consolidate international institutions’ legitimacy. This, in turn, could enhance the trust of the global public in international courts, as well as strengthen international courts and tribunals’ role in creating and interpreting international law.

To foster a meaningful and intimate discussion, this will be a closed, in-person workshop. However, we will do our best to accommodate in-person external participation, considering sanitary and space-related restrictions. Those interested can contact us at diversityintlbench@graduateinstitute.ch

Concept Note  Programme