The International Court of Justice launches a new website

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. 2017/26
27 June 2017
The International Court of Justice launches a new website
THE HAGUE, 27 June 2017. Today, the International Court of Justice, the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, launched its new website.
This user-friendly tool offers substantial enhancements, in particular as regards searchability, mobile device compatibility, navigation and readability.
The new website’s two search engines allow users to search in all the publicly accessible documents relating to the 168 cases dealt with by the Court since 1946. Users may also browse through non-case-related information on, for example, the functioning of the Court, its history, Members and Registry. The Court’s website is now compatible with tablets and smartphones, in addition to desktop and laptop computers, in view of the increasing use of mobile devices. Thanks to the improved navigation features, it is now easier for users to find precisely what they are looking for, and the site’s enhanced readability complies with international accessibility standards.
The new website, which was re-designed by the Registry of the Court, can be accessed at the usual address: www.icj-cij.org.
As in the past, the Court’s website is available in its two official languages, French and English. Given the Court’s worldwide scope and to ensure that information about the Court is more readily accessible throughout the world, key resources  including summaries of the Court’s decisions from 1946 to 2012  are also available in the four other official languages of the United Nations: Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish. In addition, the film about the Court that was produced on the occasion of its seventieth anniversary in 2016 is now available on the website in all the official languages of the United Nations.
The new features and functionalities are both comprehensive and targeted, and intended to enhance the experience of all visitors to the website: the “document search” engine aims to fulfil the needs of the legal, diplomatic and academic communities, while the “site search” functionality endeavours to meet the requirements of the general public. Similarly, the press releases and latest multimedia galleries are mainly intended to facilitate the work of members of the press. Moreover, the website provides a description of the Court’s various publications, which offer a wealth of information, ranging from general topics to more specific subject-matters.
Finally, in an effort to bring interested groups closer to the work of the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, the site provides detailed information for those wishing to visit the Court, including a calendar of events and hearings, directions to the Peace Palace, and online forms for requests for presentations on the activities of the Court.
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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 and Ms Joanne Moore, Information Officers (+31 (0)70 302 2337)
Mr. Avo Sevag Garabet, Associate Information Officer (+31 (0)70 302 2394)
Ms Genoveva Madurga, Administrative Assistant (+31 (0)70 302 2396)