The Function of Procedural Justice in International Adjudication

This article surveys the notion of procedural justice in international adjudication. The literature mainly focuses on the domestic intimations of procedural justice. Our primary concern is to retrace its essence and reposition the concept in the international legal order, stripped of the idiosyncrasies deriving from the contingencies of domestic adjudication. The article first frames the basic notion and function of procedural justice, drawing from legal theory and legal-psychological studies. It shall be explained how procedural principles - separately and in addition to fair substantive norms - are essential to preserve the justice of the legal system. Also, we describe the specific role that procedural fairness has in increasing the perceived legitimacy of the adjudication process and, in turn, the legal order and public authorities at large. The explanation follows that of the intrinsic relativity of procedural principles, due to the contingent nature of justice in any given time and society. The two-way feedback between - community values and prevailing procedural norms is described, in order to introduce the discussion of procedure in a specific community: the international legal order. Examining the function of procedural justice in the international system of adjudication requires distinguishing it from that in domestic systems in at least four aspects: the theory of sources; the function of procedural justice in a system of decentralised authority; the dual role of States as parties and rule-makers; and the variation of procedural norms across international legal sub-regimes. These aspects are briefly explored to provide the basic coordinates of the study and to lay the foundation for further research.