The International Court of Justice (ICJ), which will soon mark its 80th anniversary, is currently busier than ever, with around twenty contentious cases and three requests for advisory opinions currently pending before the Court. Some of these cases are at an advanced stage and are expected to be decided in the coming months, most notably Obligations of States in respect of Climate Change. Recent years have seen a range of noteworthy developments in the practice of the ICJ, including mass interventions, public interest litigation, and a significant increase in requests for provisional measures.

In this seminar, we will hear from experts who have written extensively on the ICJ and have also been involved in many of the recent proceedings as counsel. Speakers will reflect both on the substance of recent cases, noteworthy procedural developments, and, ultimately, what recent cases tell us about the changing role of the ICJ in the international legal system. 

Speakers: 

Martins Paparinskis, Professor of Public International Law at UCL and Chair of the International Law Commission. 

Matina Papadaki, Lecturer in International Law at the University of Glasgow. Her research focuses on public international  law with a particular focus on the law and procedure of international courts and tribunals. 

Yusra Suedi, Lecturer in International Law at the University of Manchester and author of The Individual in the Law and Practice of the International Court of Justice (Cambridge University Press, 2025). She has worked for the UN, international courts, and in cases before the International Court of Justice. 

Eirik Bjorge, Professor at University of Bristol Law School. His research and teaching are in the fields of public international law and international human rights law.

Registration:

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