Origins of the Continental Shelf Doctrine: A Critical Examination

In June 1943 the rule of international law governing the seabed was an obstacle to emerging United States interests in the petroleum resources waiting under the Gulf of Mexico. President Roosevelt believed the US should develop a 'rule of common sense' to replace the old rule that a foreign entity could occupy and exploit seabed resources just beyond America's territorial sea. The new rulevesting the continental shelf in the contiguous coastal state-represented a significant 'departure from past practices under the law of nations', but it would soon become central to international ocean governance and spur the exploitation of offshore hydrocarbons around the world. How did the new rule form? What did it displace? Was the change contested? By whom? What role did the international judiciary play? How might the rule have evolved differently? Where might it go from here?