Hybrid norms in international law

The paper analyses the emergence of legal provisions in international law that can neither be categorised as hard law or soft law, but contain elements of both. It identifies such provisions as 'hybrid norms.' The paper examines common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDRs) for financial and technical assistance under the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, and argues that the implementation of State responsbilities for assistance through a heterarchical implementation network, involving the cooperation between State and transnational actors, hybridises the international legal framework. While hybridisation is a productive response to the challenge of regulating global risks, it also puts pressure on the adoption of enforcement mechanisms and problematises the communicative role of international law. The paper preliminarily maps out three responses to the challenges of hybridisation: a conservative response, a contractual one, and an administrative response.