Jurisdiction over Unlicensed Foreign Fishing Vessels in Transit through the EEZ

This Chapter examines the permissible scope and extent of coastal State jurisdiction over unlicensed foreign fishing vessels in transit through the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. While the primacy of the freedom of navigation has traditionally been the dominant narrative in the law of the sea, this Chapter argues that the coastal State’s sovereign rights over living resources are now accepted to provide a basis for regulations to be applied to all foreign fishing vessels navigating in the EEZ, even if they are only transiting through the zone without fishing. By examining the variety of regulations that are applied by States in practice, the Chapter establishes that, in relation to foreign fishing vessels and fishing support vessels, the contemporary freedom of navigation effectively equates to a right to undertake continuous and expeditious passage from one point beyond the EEZ to another point beyond the EEZ, except in circumstances involving force majeure or distress, or activities undertaken with the authorization of the coastal State. At the same time, the Chapter notes that the rights of coastal States involve correlative duties, and explores how the concepts of due regard, reasonableness, and the balance of interests apply to limit the extent of coastal State regulation in this area.