DRAFT TERMS OF REFERENCE OF THE WORKING GROUP ON LEGAL MATTERS

 

[This terms of reference of the Working Group on Legal Matters is to be approved by the plenary delegations of the Republic of Hungary and the Slovak Republic.]

1) Composition

The Working Group on Legal Matters – hereinafter WGLM – is comprised of the Heads and experts of the national legal working groups.

The Head of each national group is eligible to nominate a surrogate and any number of experts from government offices.

The Heads may also invite experts from various independent institutions to act as members of the WGLM.

The Heads may agree on a limitation of participants of their groups.

The WGLM may invite any member of any working group to give summaries on issues that have arisen in the legal context and may delegate from each side one or more members to the meetings of the other working groups.

2) Procedure

The WGLM shall be convened;

• according to its agreed working schedule,

• upon joint decision of the Heads, or request from other working groups,

• when it is so instructed by the plenary meeting of the government representatives.

The WGLM holds its meetings alternatively in Budapest and Bratislava or in any third venue as mutually agreed by the Heads.

The working schedule should include meetings at regular intervals of at least four months if more frequent meetings are not initiated by the Heads or by the meeting of government representatives.

The meeting of the WGLM is chaired by the host of the meeting.

The WGLM shall form legal opinion on the issues on its agenda. The result of the discussions should be recorded in the Minutes of the Meeting which is to be forwarded by the host of the meeting to the government representatives within three working days. The Minutes of the meeting may include any differing opinion.

3) Mandate

The WGLM is a readily available working body for the negotiations of the Parties on legal issues. The main task of the WGLM is to:

a)   prepare the international legal framework for the implementation of the Judgement of the International Court of Justice of 25 September 1997, based on the results of the negotiations of other working groups and the governmental delegations;

b)   provide legal support for the other working groups on any issues;

c)   form legal opinions on issues brought up by the governmental delegations;

d)   identify other applicable sources of international law besides the main sources: the Treaty on the Gabčìkovo - Nagymaros Project of 1977 and the Judgement of the International Court of Justice of 25 September 1997;

e)   prepare the legal framework for joint management of the hydroelectric system;

f)   examine the legal aspects of the technical solutions proposed by the Working Group on Water Management, Environmental Protection, Navigation and Energy Production.

 

Draft drawn in Budapest on this 9^th day of June 2004.