ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the ground of State ocean jurisdiction. It identifies and discusses the connecting factors on the basis of which States have been attributed authority in ocean matters. This is done because a thorough examination of those factors provides the necessary foundation to establish whether a State has any authority at all in a specific matter. The answer to that question is important for two reasons. First, attempting to establish the extent of a State's jurisdiction is only necessary when the State does have a ground on which to exercise jurisdiction. Secondly, in the case where a ground exists, it is that very ground that will determine the precise extent of the jurisdiction. In this light, more types of jurisdiction are distinguished in this work than is usually the case. They are, in alphabetical order: the coastal zone jurisdictions, the collective jurisdictions, the delegated jurisdictions, flag State jurisdiction, personal jurisdiction, port State jurisdiction, the protective jurisdictions and the universal jurisdictions.
