Dapo Akande, a British international lawyer and professor of public international law, has been elected to the United Nations' International Court of Justice, giving the UK a judge on the court almost 10 years after its previous one failed to win re-election. He will serve a minimum nine-year term as one of the court's 15 judges.
Akande originally qualified as a lawyer in Nigeria. He is a professor of public international law, a fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, and an elected member of the UN International Law Commission. He has acted as counsel, adviser and expert in cases before international courts and tribunals, including the ICJ.
The ICJ, sometimes described as the UN's top court, deals with disputes between states. The Guardian reports the election as a big British diplomatic victory, and notes the court has recently drawn global attention through a series of opinions on Israel's failure as an occupying power to fulfil its responsibilities to the population of Gaza.
Britain had no judge on the court after 2017, when Sir Christopher Greenwood unexpectedly lost his seat to his Indian rival, leaving the UK soul searching about its standing at the UN and its record of compliance with ICJ advisory opinions. It was the first time there had been no British judge on the court.
Akande said he was "deeply honoured" by the result. "I am incredibly grateful to all the states that have put their faith in me," he said. "I pledge to serve with independence and to deciding cases on the basis of a faithful and impartial application of the law. I look forward to contributing to the ICJ's vital work in helping to resolve disputes by peaceful means, alongside the other colleagues elected today."
The lord chancellor, Alex Norris, campaigned hard for Akande. He said the new judge would bring "the independence, legal rigour, judgment and breadth of perspective that the court needs" at a moment when international law is under pressure, and that he "would make a formidable contribution to its work." Norris said the UK has been a steadfast supporter of the court: "We have accepted its compulsory jurisdiction. And we again encourage states that have not yet done so to consider accepting the court's jurisdiction in accordance with its statute."
In a separate vote in 2016 at the UN general assembly, the UK was defeated 94-15 when a Mauritian-backed resolution questioning the disputed legal status of its hold over the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean was referred to the ICJ. The court later found for Mauritius, and the current Labour government reached a deal completing negotiations that had been started under the Conservative government, though the legal process to complete it inside the UK parliament is stalled due to objections from the Trump administration.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The ICJ is the UN's court for disputes between states, and the election returns a British judge to a bench the UK had been absent from since 2017, giving London a voice in cases that shape international law.
- Akande's public pledge to decide cases with independence and impartiality, and Norris's framing of a moment when international law is under pressure, make the vote a test of how the court's authority is regarded by member states.
- For the UK it is a diplomatic win almost a decade after Sir Christopher Greenwood's unexpected defeat prompted questions about British standing at the UN.
Background
UN member states elect the judges of the International Court of Justice, which hears disputes between countries rather than cases against individuals. The court has 15 judges serving nine-year terms, and it also issues advisory opinions on questions referred to it, including on the conduct of occupations and on territorial disputes. The court is distinct from international criminal tribunals, which try individuals. Britain's absence from the bench since 2017 followed Greenwood's loss to an Indian rival, and the Guardian links the wider question of British standing at the UN to the Chagos Islands dispute, in which the general assembly referred the status of the UK's hold over the islands to the court.
Key Perspectives
Dapo Akande: says he is deeply honoured and grateful to the states that backed him, and pledges to serve with independence and to decide cases on the basis of a faithful and impartial application of the law.
Alex Norris, UK lord chancellor: says Akande brings the independence, legal rigour, judgment and breadth of perspective the court needs at a moment when international law is under pressure, and encourages states that have not accepted the court's compulsory jurisdiction to consider doing so.
What to Watch
- Akande's first cases on the bench, and whether his stated commitment to independence shapes how the court's opinions are received.
- The stalled legal process in the UK parliament to complete the Chagos Islands deal, which the Guardian reports is held up by objections from the Trump administration.
- Whether the appeal from London for wider acceptance of the court's compulsory jurisdiction draws new states in.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedBritish lawyer Dapo Akande was elected to the UN’s International Court of Justice.World news | The Guardian: “A British judge has been elected on to the UN’s international court of justice”
- SupportedAkande will serve a minimum nine-year term as one of the court’s 15 judges.World news | The Guardian: “Dapo Akande will now serve as one of the ICJ’s 15 judges for a minimum nine-year term.”
- SupportedThe election comes almost 10 years after a previous British judge failed to get re-elected.World news | The Guardian: “in a big British diplomatic victory that comes almost 10 years after a previous British judge failed to get re-elected.”
- SupportedAkande said he was “deeply honoured” by the result.World news | The Guardian: “He said: “I am deeply honoured to be elected to the international court of justice.”
- SupportedAkande said, “I am incredibly grateful to all the states that have put their faith in me.”World news | The Guardian: ““I am incredibly grateful to all the states that have put their faith in me.”
- SupportedAkande pledged to serve independently and apply the law faithfully and impartially.World news | The Guardian: “I pledge to serve with independence and to deciding cases on the basis of a faithful and impartial application of the law.”
- SupportedAkande said he looked forward to contributing to the ICJ’s work resolving disputes peacefully with the other judges elected that day.World news | The Guardian: “I look forward to contributing to the ICJ’s vital work in helping to resolve disputes by peaceful means, alongside the other colleagues elected today.”
- SupportedLord Chancellor Alex Norris said Akande would bring independence, legal rigour, judgment and breadth of perspective to the court.World news | The Guardian: “At a moment when international law is under pressure Prof Akande brings the independence, legal rigour, judgment and breadth of perspective that the court needs.”
- SupportedNorris said Akande “would make a formidable contribution to its work.”World news | The Guardian: “He would make a formidable contribution to its work.”
- SupportedNorris said the UK had accepted the court’s compulsory jurisdiction and encouraged other states to consider accepting it.World news | The Guardian: “We have accepted its compulsory jurisdiction. And we again encourage states that have not yet done so to consider accepting the court’s jurisdiction in accordance with its statute.”
- SupportedBritain had no judge on the court after Christopher Greenwood lost his seat in 2017, the first time there had been no British judge there.World news | The Guardian: “In 2017, Sir Christopher Greenwood lost his seat to his Indian rival unexpectedly, with Britain left soul searching about its standing at the UN and its record of compliance with ICJ advisory opinions. It was the first time there had been no British judge on the court.”
- SupportedIn a separate 2016 UN General Assembly vote, the UK was defeated 94–15 over a Mauritian-backed resolution referring the Chagos Islands issue to the ICJ.World news | The Guardian: “In a separate vote in 2016 at the UN general assembly the UK was defeated 94-15 when a Mauritian-backed resolution questioning the disputed legal status of the UK’s hold over the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean was referred to the ICJ.”