The law of the sea is an important area of international law which must be able to adapt to the changing needs of the international community. Making the Law of the Sea examines how various international organizations have contributed to the development of this law and what kinds of instruments and law-making techniques have been used. Each chapter considers a different international institution - including the International Maritime Organization and the United Nations - and analyses its functions and powers. Important questions are posed about the law-making process, including what actors are involved and what procedures are followed. Potential problems for the development of the law of the sea are considered and solutions are proposed. In particular, James Harrison explores and evaluates the current methods employed by international institutions to coordinate their law-making activities in order to overcome fragmentation of the law-making process.

'This book, based on the PhD thesis of the author at the University of Edinburgh, is an interesting description of the historical development of the law of the seas. The new and different aspect of the book is that it does not focus on the substantive legal arrangements of the law of the sea nor on the policy issues and state conflicts that have led to these legal arrangements. Instead, it concentrates on the role of the various international organisations and the various procedures employed by negotiators in order to push forward the development of the law of the sea over the past few decades. In other words, this book is about understanding the governance of the developments of the law of the sea rather than the governance of the oceans as such.'

Source: The Journal of International Maritime Law

'… [this book] should command the attention of a wide audience, including students and scholars studying the law of the sea, the law of international institutions, the law of treaties, and international law in general.'

Yoshifumi Tanaka Source: Netherlands International Law Review