La sottorappresentanza femminile negli organi giurisdizionali internazionali

The essay provides an analysis of the issue of under-representation of women in international courts, in order to analytically reason on the sociological meaning and the possible legal consequences of the limited presence of women in international judicial bodies. After an investigation of the persistent obstacles that women face to access careers instrumental to the international judiciary, the study focuses on the procedures to select international judges. It seems clear that the vagueness of the rules governing the appointment and election mechanisms at national and international level has a negative impact on the already limited opportunities for women to hold the office. The aim of the article is to assess whether the underrepresentation of women can be legally relevant for both the transparency of the work of the courts and the safeguard of the representativeness and legitimacy of the body.