Certain Activities carried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua)   Construction of a Road in Costa Rica along the San Juan River (Nicaragua v. Costa Rica) - The Court to hold p

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, 2517 KJ The Hague, Netherlands
Tel.: +31 (0)70 302 2323 Fax: +31 (0)70 364 9928
Website: www.icj-cij.org

Press Release

Unofficial

No. 2015/7
16 February 2015

Certain Activities carried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area

(Costa Rica v. Nicaragua)

Construction of a Road in Costa Rica along the San Juan River
(Nicaragua v. Costa Rica)

The Court to hold public hearings from Tuesday 14 April to Friday 1 May 2015

THE HAGUE, 16 February 2015. The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal
judicial organ of the United Nations, will hold public hearings in the case concerning Certain
Activities carried out by Nicaragua in the Border Area (Costa Rica v. Nicaragua) (hereinafter
“Costa Rica v. Nicaragua”) and in the case concerning the Construction of a Road in Costa Rica
along the San Juan River (Nicaragua v. Costa Rica) (hereinafter “Nicaragua v. Costa Rica”) from

Tuesday 14 April to Friday 1 May 2015, at the Peace Palace in The Hague, the seat of the Court.

It is recalled that, by two separate Orders dated 17 April 2013, the Court joined the
proceedings in these two cases, “in conformity with the principle of the sound administration of
justice and with the need for judicial economy”.

Schedule for the public hearings

 First round of oral argument

Tuesday 14 April 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Costa Rica v. Nicaragua  Costa Rica
3 p.m.-6 p.m.: Costa Rica v. Nicaragua  Costa Rica

Wednesday 15 April 10 a.m.-11.30 a.m.: Costa Rica v. Nicaragua  Costa Rica

Thursday 16 April 4.30 p.m.-6 p.m.: Costa Rica v. Nicaragua  Nicaragua

Friday 17 April 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Costa Rica v. Nicaragua  Nicaragua
3 p.m.-6 p.m.: Costa Rica v. Nicaragua  Nicaragua

Tuesday 21 April 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Nicaragua v. Costa Rica  Nicaragua
3 p.m.-6 p.m.: Nicaragua v. Costa Rica  Nicaragua

Wednesday 22 April 10 a.m.-11.30 a.m.: Nicaragua v. Costa Rica  Nicaragua - 2 -

Thursday 23 April 4.30 p.m.-6 p.m.: Nicaragua v. Costa Rica  Costa Rica

Friday 24 April 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Nicaragua v. Costa Rica  Costa Rica
3 p.m.-6 p.m.: Nicaragua v. Costa Rica  Costa Rica

 Second round of oral argument

Tuesday 28 April 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Costa Rica v. Nicaragua  Costa Rica

Wednesday 29 April 3 p.m.-6 p.m.: Costa Rica v. Nicaragua  Nicaragua

Thursday 30 April 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Nicaragua v. Costa Rica  Nicaragua

Friday 1 May 3 p.m.-6 p.m.: Nicaragua v. Costa Rica  Costa Rica

__________

History of the proceedings

The history of the proceedings may be found in the Annual Report of the Court for
2013-2014 (paras. 117-129 and 145-155), available on the Court’s website (www.icj-cij.org) under

the heading “The Court”.

___________

A. Admission procedures

Owing to the limited number of seats available in the Great Hall of Justice, priority access

will be given to representatives of the States parties to the case, and to members of the diplomatic
corps.

1. Members of the diplomatic corps

The Information Department requests members of the diplomatic corps who plan to attend
the hearings to notify it accordingly before midnight on Thursday 9 April 2015 (The Hague
time), by e-mail to [email protected].

2. Members of the public

A number of seats will be allocated to members of the public on a first-come,
first-served basis. There will be no advance registration procedure, and admission requests
submitted beforehand will not be considered.

3. Media representatives

Media representatives are subject to a compulsory online accreditation procedure, which will
close at midnight on Thursday 9 April 2015. Requests submitted after this deadline will not be
considered. For full details (timetable, technical facilities, etc.), see the section below entitled
“Further practical information for the media”. - 3 -

B. Further practical information for the media

1. Verbatim records of the hearings

Verbatim records of the pleadings will be published daily on the Court’s website. On the
final day of the hearings, a press release will be issued presenting the submissions of the Parties.
Note that the Court’s press releases do not constitute official documents.

2. Entry to the Peace Palace

The Press Room will be open to the media on hearing days one hour prior to the start of the

hearing and one hour after its conclusion. Media representatives must bring with them their
personal ID and press card. They are asked to arrive at the Peace Palace gates between one hour
and 30 minutes before the start of each hearing. Only duly accredited individuals with valid
identification will be permitted to enter the Peace Palace grounds.

3. Parking at the Peace Palace, satellite vehicles

No parking is allowed in the Peace Palace grounds apart from satellite vehicles. Media
wishing to park satellite vehicles are requested to fill in the appropriate fields in the online
accreditation form. Televised media wishing to broadcast the sitting live should contact the
Information Department as soon as possible to make the necessary arrangements. Satellite vehicle
technicians/drivers will be informed in due course of access times to the Peace Palace grounds.

4. Access to the courtroom

Photographers and camera crews will only be permitted to enter the room for a few minutes
at the start of the first day of each round of pleadings. They will be accompanied by Registry staff
members and must keep to the right-hand side of the room. Journalists will be able to follow the
hearings from the Press Room.

5. Press Room

The hearings will be transmitted live on a large screen, in English and French, in a press

room equipped with a shared Internet access (Wi-Fi, Ethernet). TV crews can connect to the
Court’s PAL (HD and SD) and NTSC (SD) audio-visual system, and radio reporters to the audio
system.

6. Other media services

For further practical information (on requests for interviews, TV stand-up positions, audio
and video outputs available, etc.), please visit the Court’s website. Click on “Press Room”, and

then on “Media Services”.

___________

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

It was established by the United Nations Charter in June 1945 and began its activities in
April 1946. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands). Of the six
principal organs of the United Nations, it is the only one not located in New York. The Court has a
twofold role: first, to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by
States (its judgments have binding force and are without appeal for the parties concerned); and,
second, to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by duly authorized United
Nations organs and agencies of the system. The Court is composed of 15 judges elected for a - 4 -

nine-year term by the General Assembly and the Security Council of the United Nations.
Independent of the United Nations Secretariat, it is assisted by a Registry, its own international

secretariat, whose activities are both judicial and diplomatic, as well as administrative. The official
languages of the Court are French and English. Also known as the “World Court”, it is the only
court of a universal character with general jurisdiction.

The ICJ, a court open only to States for contentious proceedings, and to certain organs and
institutions of the United Nations system for advisory proceedings, should not be confused with the

other  mostly criminal  judicial institutions based in The Hague and adjacent areas, such as the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY, an ad hoc court created by the
Security Council), the International Criminal Court (ICC, the first permanent international criminal
court, established by treaty, which does not belong to the United Nations system), the Special
Tribunal for Lebanon (STL, an independent judicial body composed of Lebanese and international
judges, which is not a United Nations tribunal and does not form part of the Lebanese judicial
system), or the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA, an independent institution which assists in

the establishment of arbitral tribunals and facilitates their work, in accordance with the Hague
Convention of 1899).

___________

Information Department:

Mr. Andrey Poskakukhin, First Secretary of the Court, Head of Department (+31 (0)70 302 2336)
Mr. Boris Heim, Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2337)
Ms Joanne Moore, Associate Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2394)
Ms Genoveva Madurga, Administrative Assistant (+31 (0)70 302 2396)