The product of the 1899 Hague Peace Conference, the Permanent Court of Arbitration was formally established by the 1899 Convention for the Pacific Settlement of International Disputes (“1899 Convention”), as revised by the 1907 Convention for the Pacific Settlement of International Disputes (“1907 Convention”, together with the 1899 Convention, the “Founding Conventions”). Although the PCA’s initial activity principally concerned the settlement of disputes involving only States, through arbitration and other peaceful means such as conciliation, mediation, and fact-finding, the Founding Conventions established a flexible framework. Over time, the PCA’s Contracting Parties, in keeping with the changing needs of dispute resolution at the international level, have interpreted the institution’s mandate to include dispute involving various combinations of States, State entities, international organizations, and private parties.

This Research Guide is intended as a starting point for research on the Permanent Court of Arbitration. It provides the basic legal materials available in the Peace Palace Library, both in print and electronic format. Handbooks, leading articles, bibliographies, periodicals, serial publications and documents of interest are presented in the Selective Bibliography section. Links to the PPL Catalogue are inserted. The Library's subject heading (keyword) Permanent Court of Arbitration is instrumental for searching through the Catalogue. Special attention is given to our subscriptions on databases, e-journals, e-books and other electronic resources. Finally, this Research Guide features links to relevant websites and other online resources of particular interest.