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 Twitter Account: @CIJ_ICJ
Press Release
Unofficial
No. 2016/1
29 January 2016
Obligations concerning Negotiations relating to Cessation of the Nuclear Arms
Race and to Nuclear Disarmament (Marshall Islands v. India)
Jurisdiction
The Court to hold public hearings from Monday 7 March to
Wednesday 16 March 2016
THE HAGUE, 29 January 2016. The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal
judicial organ of the United Nations, will hold public hearings in the case of Obligations
concerning Negotiations relating to Cessation of the Nuclear Arms Race and to Nuclear
Disarmament (Marshall Islands v. India) from Monday 7 March to Wednesday 16 March 2016, at
the Peace Palace in The Hague, the seat of the Court.
The hearings will concern solely the question of the jurisdiction of the Court.
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Schedule for the public hearings
First round of oral argument
Monday 7 March 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: Marshall Islands
Thursday 10 March 10 a.m.-1 p.m.: India
Second round of oral argument
Monday 14 March 10 a.m.-11.30 a.m.: Marshall Islands
Wednesday 16 March 10 a.m.-11.30 a.m.: India
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History of the proceedings
The history of the proceedings may be found in the Annual Report of the Court for
2014-2015 (paras. 205-210), available on the Court’s website (www.icj-cij.org).
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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 3 March 2016 (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 3 March 2016. 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”.
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 one hour prior to the start of hearings and will close one hour
after they conclude. Accredited media representatives must bring with them their personal ID and
press card, and are asked to arrive at the Peace Palace gates one hour (and no later than 30 minutes)
before the start of the hearings. 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 - 3 -
Information Department as soon as possible to make the necessary arrangements. Satellite vehicle
technicians/drivers will be informed in due course of the access times for 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”.
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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
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 international judicial body with an independent legal personality,
established by the United Nations Security Council upon the request of the Lebanese Government
and composed of Lebanese and international judges), 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).
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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)
Obligations concerning Negotiations relating to Cessation of the Nuclear Arms Race and to Nuclear Disarmament (Marshall Islands v. India) - Jurisdiction - The Court to hold public hearings from Monday 7 March to Wednesday 16 March 2016