Article 63 of the ICJ Statute and the Legal Effects of Judgments on Intervening States – an Attempt for More Clarity

What is it about?

Article 63(2) of the ICJ Statute says that the interpretation of conventions contained in judgments made by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) should also bind other States involved in a case (so-called intervening States). However, it's unclear how much these interpretations contained in judgments should bind those intervening States. This article looks into different interpretations of Article 63(2). How this rule is understood can affect whether States decide to get involved in cases and why. The article suggests interpreting this rule narrowly, meaning it doesn't have an extensive binding effect. Instead, it argues that it only binds intervening States for the particular case only and only vis-a-vis the other States involved in the case. This approach helps avoid conflicts with other international legal rules and keeps things clearer.

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