The chapter deals with the ICJ and human rights. It argues that, while the Court is not and will never be a specialised human rights court, it has a significant role in the protection and development of human rights. The author explains some structural obstacles and impediments to the engagement of the Court with human rights, and then offers some instances of substantial incorporation of human rights into the fabric of general international law through interpretation and legal concepts encompassing international community interests. The chapter suggests that structural disengagement in the sense of norms allowing only States to litigate before the Court does not impede substantial incorporation which may depend on other factors, including the changing attitudes of the ICJ judges and lawyers before the Court.

This chapter addresses the Court’s jurisdiction in contentious cases and its jurisdiction in advisory opinions, using specific examples from the Court’s judgments and opinions. It considers whether a novel approach is needed to confer on the Court compulsory jurisdiction across a wider range of disputes.

This chapter assesses whether the EU legislators and judiciary ensure a right balance between two fundamental procedural rights – the right of access to the court and the right of defence. It describes the multiple sources of protection of the right to a fair trial in the EU and how they interrelate with each other. The main part of the analysis focuses on secondary law and case law, and especially on one of the by-products of the balancing of rights and interests by the CJEU – an obligation on the defendant to use all the remedies in the state of origin. The chapter also considers the important question of whether it is necessary or desirable to introduce similar EU-wide standards in civil cases. It critically assesses the European Parliament’s 2017 recommendations on a directive establishing common minimum standards of civil procedure in the EU.