The Statute of the International Court of Justice

A Commentary

This landmark publication in the field of international law delivers expert assessment of new developments in the important work of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) from a team of renowned editors and commentators.The ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations and plays a central role in both the peaceful settlement of international disputes and the development of international law. This comprehensive Commentary on the Statute of the International Court of Justice, now in its third edition, analyses in detail not only the Statute of the Court itself but also the related provisions of the United Nations Charter as well as the relevant provisions of the Court's Rules of Procedure. Six years after the publication of the second edition, the third edition of the Commentary embraces current events before the International Court of Justice as well as before other courts and tribunals relevant for the interpretation and application of its Statute.The Commentary provides a comprehensive overview and analysis of all legal questions and issues the Court has had to address in the past, and looks forward to those it will have to address in the future. It illuminates the central issues of procedure and substance that the Court and counsel appearing before it face in their day-to-day work. In addition to commentary covering all of the articles of the Statute of the ICJ, plus the relevant articles of the Charter of the United Nations, the book includes two scene-setting chapters: Historical Introduction and General Principles of Procedural Law, as well as important and instructive chapters on Counter-Claims, Discontinuation and Withdrawal, and Evidentiary Issues.