The European Union and International Dispute Settlement Introduction
As an international actor the European Union (EU) faces two types of challenge, each derived from the fact that the EU and its Member States operate internationally both independently and in tandem. The first is external: the challenge to be accepted as an autonomous player on the international stage with an identity and legal personality distinct from its Member States, while at the same time achieving recognition that 'the EU is, under international law, precluded by its very nature from being considered a State' thereby raising legal questions which may require bespoke answers over its participation in treaty regimes, dispute settlement systems and international responsibility. The second challenge, presenting to some degree the reverse of this medal, is internal: the construction of a constitutional framework which allows the EU to participate in international law making and its attendant need for international dispute settlement, while at the same time safeguarding the EU lawmediated relationship between the EU and its Member States. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) is certainly itself an international court but it is also in a real sense a 'domestic' court for the EU's own legal order; in both roles it may find itself in competition with other international courts and tribunals.