Determining the Object of the Dispute and Jurisdiction Ratione Materiae in Provisional Measures Litigation before the International Court of Justice

This article shows that, at the provisional measures stage, the determination of the object of the dispute by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is a consistent feature of its assessment of its jurisdiction ratione materiae. On the one hand, the jurisdiction ratione materiae of the principal judicial organ of the United Nations (UN) rests on the object of the dispute, through the compromissory clause included in the treaty binding the parties to the dispute, and, on the other hand, this jurisdiction influences the determination of the object of the dispute. The mutual influence of these notions makes them key considerations in provisional measures litigation before the ICJ. Moreover, the ICJ's interpretation of its power to order provisional measures under Article 41, paragraph 1, of the Statute of the International Court of Justice raises the possibility that it may do so in order to prevent an aggravation of the dispute, a possibility that raises serious questions. Beyond their possible "decoupling" from the object of the dispute and the function of provisional measures, provisional measures aiming to prevent the aggravation of a dispute could in some sense be said to advance the purposes and principles of the UN, including the maintenance of international peace and security.