International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice (ICJ), also known as the World Court, is a judicial instrument of the United Nations. The primary function of the International Court of Justice is to provide judgements on international disputes according to international law and provide advisory opinions on issues that concern international law. ICJ is the only judicial body with authority to give rulings over international conflicts and is seen as a primary source of international law.

History of ICJ 

PCIJ (Permanent Court of International Justice)

The Permanent Court of International Justice was formed through article 14 of the League’s covenant that required the establishment of PCIJ. The Permanent Court of International Justice had two primary functions. The first was to provide rulings on any international dispute presented before them by the parties involved. The second was to give an advisory opinion on any conflict or question submitted to them by the League of Nations.

Establishment of the International Court of Justice

The Permanent Court of International Justice ended due to the II World War and held its last session in December 1939. In 1942 the USA and the UK declared their intention of forming an international court, where the UK formed a panel comprising jurists from different parts of the world called the Inter-allied Committee, which in its report recommended that-

• The statute for the new International Court should be similar to that of the Permanent Court of International Justice.
• The Court can only have jurisdiction if the country has voluntarily consented.
• The Court should not indulge in political matters and limit itself to judicial issues.
• The Court should have an advisory jurisdiction.

The Allied conference at Dumbarton Oaks in the US proposed that an intergovernmental organisation be established, and the organisation should consist of an international court. Forty-four jurists from different parts of the world gathered for a meeting in Washington DC in April 1945, intending to draft a statute for the code proposed at the allied conference at Dumbarton Oaks.

In the San Francisco conference held in 1945, it was decided that the new International Court should act as the primary judicial instrument for the United Nations. The statute of the International Court of Justice would be an essential part of the United Nations charter. The International Court of Justice statute is similar to The Permanent Court of International Justice.

The election of the International Court of Justice members was held in the first session of the UN General Assembly and Security Council.

The Permanent Court of Justice was formally terminated in April 1946.

The United Kingdom filed the first case in the International Court of Justice on the incidents in the code for the channel. The two parties, in this case, were the United Kingdom and Albania, against whom the case was filed.

Jurisdiction

Being a party only to the International Court of Justice statute does not give the ICJ jurisdiction over the conflicts between the parties. There are three types of jurisdiction in cases presented before the International Court of Justice.

• Contentious Jurisdiction 

In cases of contentious jurisdiction, the ICJ has the authority to issue judgements that both the parties in disputes have to follow. In these types of cases, both the nations agree to follow the ruling of the ICJ. Contentious Jurisdiction is only applicable to cases where both the parties are nation-states.

• Incidental Jurisdiction

Sometimes, the International Court of Justice has to issue interim measures before giving the final judgement to protect a party’s rights in the dispute. Both parties can apply to the International Court of Justice to issue interim measures. Article 41 of the statute provides ICJ with the authority of incidental jurisdiction.

• Advisory opinions

The United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council have the authority to request the International Court of Justice to issue an advisory opinion on the legal issues with the authorisation of the General Assembly.

Conclusion

In the above text, we learned about the International Court of Justice and its significance in the United Nations. We also learned about the International Court of Justice’s history and the Permanent Court of International Justice. The International Court of Justice is the judicial instrument of the United Nations that can provide rulings on international disputes per international law. The ICJ can also issue advisory opinions for the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council. The ICJ has jurisdiction over states that voluntarily agreed.