Repräsentative Auslegung völkerrechtlicher Verträge

Representative interpretation, meaning an interpretation which is directly attributable to contracting parties, is an important means of guiding the application of agreements and treaties, in particular where international courts and tribunals show a tendency towards dynamic interpretation. In the field of international economic law, the WTO Agreement, the IMF Statute and, in particular, an increasing number of investment and trade agreements contain special interpretative clauses which envisage their representative interpretation. In addition, Article 31 (3) (a) of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties emphasises the authoritative role of agreements between contracting parties regarding the interpretation of treaties. This book sheds light on the background of the representative interpretation of agreements and treaties, examines its effects, explores its limits and assesses its usefulness.