Judging War: The Legitimacy of International Courts in Armed Conflicts

There is nothing quite like watching two States fight it out in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at the Peace Palace, rather than on the battlefield. Arising from the ashes of World War II, the ICJ was created to serve as the “principal judicial organ” of the United Nations, which was itself founded to “save succeeding generations from the scourge of war” and “to establish conditions under which justice and respect for [international law] can be maintained…” ( see the United Nations Charter preamble and Article 92). The entire U.N.

project was premised on moving away from organized violence toward maintenance of peace and security through international cooperation and law. Yet what role exactly can, or should, international courts like the ICJ and the International Criminal Court (