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This research project on Australia and the International Court of Justice is funded by the Australian Research Council’s Discovery grant scheme. The aim of the project is to identify and assess the place of adjudication in international affairs, focussing on the experience of a particular country - Australia - and a particular institution - the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
The Chief Investigators on the project are Melbourne Laureate Professor Hilary Charlesworth and Professor Margaret Young. Dr Emma Nyhan is a Research Fellow on the project.
The project will offer the first detailed account of the context and impact of the cases in which Australia has been involved before the ICJ. Researchers will build expertise on the role of the ICJ in global governance through doctrinal and empirical research. Interviews with judges, lawyers, diplomats and others will help build an historical record spanning 70 years. This will allow an assessment of the complex roles that adjudication and advisory opinions can play in the resolution of international disputes.
Ultimately, the project will enrich understanding of Australian international affairs and deepen knowledge about adjudication in international dispute resolution and global governance. It will also provide practical guidance on when international adjudication is likely to be productive for Australia, the Asia-Pacific region and the international legal system.
The Melbourne Journal of International Law will publish a Special Issue on 'National Encounters with the International Court of Justice' in 2021, a collection of articles arising from this research project.