Whereas a draft of this Order has been laid before Parliament in accordance with section 10 of the International Organisations Act 1968(1) (“the Act”) and has been approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament:

Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by virtue and in exercise of the powers conferred on Her by section 5 of the Act or otherwise in Her Majesty vested, is pleased, by and with the advice of Her Privy Council, to order, and it is hereby ordered, as follows: —

PART IGENERAL

Citation and Entry into Force

1.  This Order may be cited as the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (Immunities and Privileges) Order 1996 and shall come into force on the date, to be notified in the London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes, on which the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10th December 1982(2) enters into force in respect of the United Kingdom.

Interpretation

2.  In this Order—

“the 1961 Convention Articles” means the Articles (being certain Articles of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations signed in 1961) which are set out in Schedule 1 to the Diplomatic Privileges Act 1964(3);

“the Tribunal” means the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea established in accordance with Annex VI of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

PART IITHE TRIBUNAL

3.  Except in so far as in any particular case any privilege or immunity is waived by the Tribunal, the members of the Tribunal shall enjoy, when engaged on the business of the Tribunal, the like privileges and immunities as, in accordance with the 1961 Convention Articles, are accorded to the head of a diplomatic mission.

4.  The members of the Tribunal and the registrar of the Tribunal shall have exemption from income tax in respect of emoluments received by them as members or as the registrar.

N. H. Nicholls
Clerk of the Privy Council

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)
This Order confers privileges and immunities on the members of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. These privileges and immunities are conferred in accordance with Annex VI of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Cmnd. 8941). The Order will enable Her Majesty’s Government to give effect to that Convention and will come into force on the date on which the Convention enters into force in respect of the United Kingdom.


(1)
1968 c. 48.

(2)
Cmnd. 8941.

(3)
1964 c. 81.