As for remedies against states and individuals – the accountability of the former always having been firmly rooted as one of the cornerstones of the international legal and political order, and the accountability of individuals also having entered into the body of international law – any discussion on the more procedural and consequential issues falling within the scope of redress against international organisations has to be correctly placed against the background of their accountability regime. Albeit in an embryonic form, it has been in place since the establishment of international organisations: such a regime's formulation and adjustment is bound to be a continuous process.

The need for a reasonably comprehensive and consolidated body of applicable rules, recommended practices and guidelines is all the more pressing given the ever-increasing calls from various quarters – states and non-state parties potentially affected in their interests and/or rights by the acts, actions or omissions of international organisations – for appropriate remedies to become available. In further elaborating the body of primary rules, care should be taken not to undermine pre-existing or emerging rules of legal liability or responsibility by inadvertently including them as merely good practice. The codification of principles common to all international organisations, as they have been listed by the ILA Committee on Accountability of International Organisations in its Second Report, could be a first, but crucial, step in establishing a comprehensive accountability regime.