Maritime Delimitation and Territorial Questions (Qatar v. Bahrain)
International Court of Justice
1994 I.C.J. 112
Qatar (plaintiff) argued two exchanges of letters — a 1987 letter mediated by Saudi Arabia's King, and a 1990 "Minutes" document signed by the foreign ministers of Bahrain, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia — constituted binding international agreements establishing ICJ jurisdiction over the countries' sovereignty and maritime-boundary disputes; Bahrain (defendant) agreed the 1987 letter was binding but argued the 1990 Minutes were merely an informal record of negotiations, not a binding agreement, and thus Qatar lacked a jurisdictional basis for unilateral suit.
Whether the formation of a binding international treaty always requires formal processes such as signatures of foreign ministers and public adoption.