paragraph 217 in volume 2, chapter 13, Matters of Jurisdiction
It is sometimes asserted that by raising a matter of jurisdiction, a State implies that it is afraid of having the legality of its actions investigated by the Court - that it has no defence in law to the claim.1 Underlying this type of argument is the consideration that, while a State has a valid legal right to raise these questions, it is now, at the end of the twentieth century, praeter civium mores for it to do so.
The emotional appeal of this type of argument is undoubtedly strong. However, it is wit…