On 17 January 2026 the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement) enters into force. This Agreement was adopted in 2023 after around two decades of negotiations and constitutes the newest addition to the UNCLOS family of treaties.
The lecture focused on the dispute settlement mechanism(s) agreed for the purposes of the BBNJ Agreement. It examined the origins of the relevant provisions, their final form, how they relate to UNCLOS dispute settlement rules, and how the BBNJ Agreement’s specific subject matter fits within the chosen dispute settlement framework.
Dr Konrad Marciniak currently serves as a Judge at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (for the term 2023-2032). Before assuming that position, Dr Marciniak had worked at the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in particular as the Director and Deputy Director of the Legal and Treaty Department. He represented the Government of Poland in many intergovernmental meetings, including at the United Nations, European Union, Council of Europe and Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings. He is also a Visiting Professor at Queen Mary University of London. Dr Marciniak was also involved in the negotiations of multiple bilateral and multilateral treaties, including the BBNJ Agreement. He has lectured at a number of universities in Poland and abroad, as well as in the framework of the Nippon Programme and the UN International Law Fellowship Programme. He has also authored articles, including on the law of the sea.
