The International Court Of Justice Essay Research

The International Court Of Justice Essay, Research Paper

The International Court of Justice

The International Court Of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, which succeeded the Permanent

court of International Justice after World War Two. It gains its legitimacy from Article 92 of the UN Charter which allows it to

function ” in accordance with the annexed Statute, which is based upon the Statute of the Permanent Court of International

Justice and forms an integral part of the present Charter”.

By Article 93 all members of the UN are ipso-facto members of the Statute and that states not members may become parties,

on conditions to be determined in each case by the UN General Assembly on recommendation of the Security Council.

Therefore allowing countries such as Switzerland and San Marino, though not members of the UN, to be parties to the Statute

of the Court.

The court consist of 15 judges, no two of whom may be Nationals of the same state, elected by the General assembly and the

Security Council. They are elected for 9 years and are eligible for reelections.

The seat of the court is in Hague, Holland, but it may hold sessions elsewhere whenever it considers desirable. It is a continuing

body. The Statute provides that it is permanently in session except during judicial vacations. It is also an autonomous body. It

elects its president and vice- president, appoints its registrar, and provides for the appointment of other officers and clerical

staff.

Its function is to pass judgement on disputes between states, as such only states may bring their cases before the court. It is

open to all states that are party to the statute and those who agree to the conditions laid down by the SC.

The proceedings of the court are carried out in French and English; either may be used by the parties. Written pleading and oral

presentations presented in one language are translated into the other. The judgements and opinions are both in French and

English.

Cases are brought before the court either by the notification to it of a special agreement concluded by the parties or by the

unilateral action of one of them through a written appeal to the registrar.

Its proceedings are in two parts, written and oral.

The Court may also hear witnesses and appoint commissions of experts to make investigations and reports when necessary.

These procedures were used in the Corfu Channel, Temple of Preah Vihear and in South West Africa(1966).

The deliberation of the court are held in private, but the judgements , which are by majority vote, are read in open court. In the

case of a tie, the President may cast a deciding vote; this was done in the South West Africa Case where a 7-7 vote was cast.

Any judge may file a separate opinion if he does not agree in whole or part with the judgement. The decision of the court is final

and without appeal.

Although the ICJ has no enforcement powers, Article 94 of the Charter incorporates an undertaking on the part of each

member of the UN “to comply with the decision of the … court…in any case to which it is a party” and a further provision that:

IF any party to a case fails to perform the obligations incumbent upon it under a judgement rendered by the court, the other

party may have recourse to the Security Council, which may, if it deem necessary, make recommendations or decide upon

measures to be taken to give effect to the judgement.

The court is authorised by Article 65 of the Statute to give advisory opinions on any legal questions at the request of whatever

body may be authorised by or in accordance with the UN Charter to make such a request. Article 96 of the Charter provides

that such opinions may be requested by the General Assembly or the SC and by other organs of the UN and specialized

agencies, when authorised by the GA. Such requests must be made by means of a written request containing an exact

statement of the questions, accompanied by all documents likely to shed light upon them. >From this point on, the procedure

before the court is somewhat analogous to contentious cases.

In its role as and advisory body, the court has given some important opinions with regard to the costs of peacekeeping, which

could be reckoned as normal expenses. It also gave opinions concerning admissions into the UN.

Because of the ICJ’s limited powers, its strict need to adhere to its charter and its impotency of action unless approached we

must consider its ability to resolve cases brought before it successfully, its failures to do so when approached and its

shortcomings, in accessing its effectiveness, keeping in mind its role in maintaining World peace.

Since its founding in 1946, the ICJ has dealt with 41 contentious cases between states and has also delivered 21 advisory

opinions. It has a mixed record of successes and failures, with a surprisingly high degree of compliance with the verdict of the

ICJ.(Only two cases involving the Corfu Channel Case and the US-Nicaragua case did the countries ref

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