United Nations Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===International Court of Justice=== {{Main|International Court of Justice}} [[File:Grand Hall de Justice de Palais de La Paix Γ La Haye Pays-Bas.jpg|thumb|The ICJ ruled that [[2008 Kosovo declaration of independence|Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence]] from Serbia in 2008 did not violate international law.]] The International Court of Justice (or ICJ), sometimes known as the World Court,<ref name="britannica.com">{{cite web|title=International Court of Justice {{!}} Definition, Cases, Purpose, & Facts|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/International-Court-of-Justice|access-date=2021-10-18|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|archive-date=8 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308151834/https://www.britannica.com/topic/International-Court-of-Justice|url-status=live}}</ref> is the primary judicial organ of the UN. It is the successor to the [[Permanent Court of International Justice]] and occupies the body's former headquarters in the [[Peace Palace]] in [[The Hague|The Hague, Netherlands]], making it the only principal organ not based in New York City. The ICJ's main function is adjudicating disputes among nations. Examples of issues they have heard include war crimes, violations of state sovereignty and ethnic cleansing.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Court|url=http://www.icj-cij.org/en|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180909054816/http://www.icj-cij.org/en|archive-date=9 September 2018|access-date=2 November 2017|publisher=International Court of Justice}}</ref> The court can also be called upon by other UN organs to provide advisory opinions on matters of international law.{{sfn|Fomerand|2009|p=183}} All UN member states are parties to the [[Statute of the International Court of Justice|ICJ Statute]], which forms an integral part of the UN Charter, and non-members may also become parties. The ICJ's rulings are binding upon parties and, along with its advisory opinions, serve as [[sources of international law]].<ref name="britannica.com"/> The court is composed of 15 judges appointed to nine-year terms by the General Assembly. Every sitting judge must be from a different nation.{{sfn|Fomerand|2009|p=183}}{{sfn|Fasulo|2004|pp=100β101}} Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page