ICJ preliminary objections

ICJ statute, 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 or extent of the reparation to be made for the breach of an international obligation.

ICJ court rules, Article 79

          1. Any objection by the respondent to the jurisdiction of the Court or to the admissibility of the application, or other objection the decision upon which is requested before any further proceedings on the merits, shall be made in writing as soon as possible, and not later than three months after the delivery of the Memorial.  Any such objection made by a party other than the respondent shall be filed within the time-limit fixed for the delivery of that party's first pleading.

          2. Notwithstanding paragraph 1 above, following the submission of the application and after the President has met and consulted with the parties, the Court may decide that any questions of jurisdiction and admissibility shall be determined separately.

          3. Where the Court so decides, the parties shall submit any pleadings as to jurisdiction and admissibility within the time-limits fixed by the Court and in the order determined by it, notwithstanding Article 45, paragraph 1.

          4. The preliminary objection shall set out the facts and the law on which the objection is based, the submissions and a list of the documents in support;  it shall mention any evidence which the party may desire to produce.  Copies of the supporting documents shall be attached.

          5. Upon receipt by the Registry of a preliminary objection, the proceedings on the merits shall be suspended and the Court, or the President if the Court is not sitting, shall fix the time-limit within which the other party may present a written statement of its observations and submissions;  documents in support shall be attached and evidence which it is proposed to produce shall be mentioned.

          6. Unless otherwise decided by the Court, the further proceedings shall be oral.

          7. The statements of facts and law in the pleadings referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5 of this Article, and the statements and evidence presented at the hearings contemplated by paragraph 6, shall be confined to those matters that are relevant to the objection.

          8. In order to enable the Court to determine its jurisdiction at the preliminary stage of the proceedings, the Court, whenever necessary, may request the parties to argue all questions of law and fact, and to adduce all evidence, which bear on the issue.

          9. After hearing the parties, the Court shall give its decision in the form of a judgment, by which it shall either uphold the objection, reject it, or declare that the objection does not possess, in the circumstances of the case, an exclusively preliminary character.  If the Court rejects the objection or declares that it does not possess an exclusively preliminary character, it shall fix time-limits for the further proceedings.

          10. Any agreement between the parties that an objection submitted under paragraph 1 of this Article be heard and determined within the framework of the merits shall be given effect by the Court.

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*Amendment entered into force on 1 February 2001.  Article 79 of the Rules of Court as adopted on 14 April 1978 has continued to apply to all cases submitted to the Court prior to 1 February 2001. [1]In Article 79, paragraph 1, as amended, the words “as soon as possible, and not later than three months after the delivery of the Memorial” have been substituted for the words “within the time-limit fixed for the delivery of the Counter-Memorial” contained in the text of this paragraph as adopted on 14 April 1978. Paragraphs 2 and 3 of the amended Article 79 are new. The former paragraphs 2 to 8 have been renumbered, respectively, as paragraphs 4 to 10.