Statute of the International Court of Justice

Chapter II. Competence of the Court.

Article 34.(1) Only states may be parties in cases before the Court.

(2) The Court, subject to and in conformity with its Rules, may request of
public International Organizations information relevant to cases before it,
and shall receive such information presented by such organizations on their
own initiative.

(3) Whenever the construction of the constituent instrument of a public
international organization or of an international convention adopted
thereunder is in question in a case before the Court, the Registrar shall
so notify the public international organization concerned and shall
communicate to it copies of all the written proceedings.

Article 35.(1) The Court shall be open to the states parties to the present
Statute.

(2) The conditions under which the Court shall be open to other states
shall, subject to the special provisions contained in Treaties in force, be
laid down by the Security Council, but in no case shall such conditions
place the parties in position of inequality before the Court.

(3) When a state which is not a Member of the United Nations is a party to
a case, the Court shall fix the amount which the party is to contribute
towards the expenses of the Court. This provision shall not apply if such
state is bearing a share of the expenses of the Court.

Article 36.(1) The jurisdiction of the Court comprises all cases which the
parties refer to it and all matters specially provided for in the Charter
of the United Nations or in Treaties and conventions in force.

(2) The states parties to the present Statute may at any time declare that
they recognize as compulsory ipso facto and without special agreement, in
relation to any other state accepting the same obligation, the jurisdiction
of the Court in all legal disputes concerning:

(a) the interpretation of a treaty;

(b) any question of international law;

(c) the existence of any fact which, if established, would
constitute a breach of an international obligation;

(d) the nature of extent of the reparation to be made for the
breach of an international obligation.

(3) The declarations referred to above may be made unconditionally or on
condition of reciprocity on the part of several or certain states, or for a
certain time.

(4) Such declarations shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the
United Nations, who shall transmit copies thereof to the parties to the
Statute and to the Registrar of the Court.

(5) Declarations made under Article 36 of the Statute of the Permanent
Court of International Justice and which are still in force shall be
deemed, as between the parties to the present Statute, to be acceptances of
the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice for the
period which they still have to run and in accordance with their terms.

(6) In the event of a dispute as to whether the Court has jurisdiction, the
matter shall be settled by the decision of the Court.

Article 37. Whenever a treaty or convention in force provides for reference
of a matter to a tribunal to have been instituted by the League of Nations ,
or to the Permanent Court of International Justice, the matter shall, as
between the parties to the present Statute, be referred to the
International Court of Justice .

Article 38.(1) The Court, whose function is to decide in accordance with
international law such disputes as are submitted to it, shall apply:

(a) international conventions, whether general or particular,
establishing rules expressly recognized by the contesting states;
(b) international custom, as evidence of a general practice accepted as
law;
(c) the general principles of law recognized by civilized nations;
(d) subject to the provisions of Article 59, judicial decisions and the
teachings of the most highly qualified publicists of the various
nations, as subsidiary means for the determination of rules of law.

(2) This provision shall not prejudice the power of the Court to decide a
case ex aequo et bono, if the parties agree thereto.

Author: international

Mentioned in these Entries

International Court of Justice, International Organizations, League of Nations, Statute of the International Court of Justice, Treaties.