This book addresses the unresolved legal challenges which the increasing role of private corporate actors in deep seabed mining will raise in the coming years. It assesses the tension between corporate commercial interests and the achievement of the common heritage of mankind, under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Dr Joanna Dingwall is a public international lawyer, qualified to practice law in Scotland, New York, England and Wales. She lectures international law at the University of Glasgow, School of Law, and she previously taught at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. In addition to her academic career, Dr Dingwall is a lawyer to the Scottish Government concerning legal aspects of Scotland's offshore renewable energy sector, protection of the marine environment and other law of the sea matters. Previously, she worked as a London-based public international law and international dispute resolution practitioner for several years.

• Introduction


• 1: A Methodological Approach to Deep Seabed Mining by Non-State Actors


• Part I: Uncharted Waters - Deep Seabed Mining of the Common Heritage of Mankind by Corporate Actors


• 2: The Deep Seabed beyond National Jurisdiction and the Rise of Mining Activities within it by Non-State Actors


• 3: The Role of the Common Heritage Concept in Deep Seabed Mining


• Part II: The Common Heritage as Process - Anchoring the Deep Seabed Mining Regime Applicable to Corporate Actors Within its Institutional Context


• 4: Common Management Through Institutional Architecture - What is the Scope of the UNCLOS Deep Seabed Mining Regime and the Role of the ISA within it?


• 5: Preventing Unilateral Deep Seabed Mining Activities - To What Extent Does the UNCLOS Regime Constrain External Actors?


• Part III: The Common Heritage's Substantive Core - Navigating Conflict Between Regulatory Authority and Corporate Participation


• 6: Does the Regime Secure the Common Heritage's Benefit - Sharing and Marine Environmental Protection Components?


• 7: Balancing Community and Autonomy - To What Extent Does the Regime Reconcile ISA Regulatory Authority and Investment Protection for Corporate Actors?


• Concluding Remarks on Corporate Entity Involvement in Deep Seabed Mining