International Judicial Monitor
Published by the International Judicial Academy, Washington, D.C., with assistance from the
American Society of International Law
Summer 2015 Issue
 

Justice In Profile

 

James Richard Crawford
Australia
Judge, International Court of Justice

Judge James Richard Crawford

By: T’Aria Reynolds, Intern, International Judicial Academy

James R. Crawford currently serves as a judge of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the “principal judicial organ” of the United Nations. He is the second Australian to serve on the United Nation’s highest court. He is one of 15 members of the Court,each of whom are elected for terms of nine years. Judge Crawford was elected by the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council in November 2014 and took office February 2015.

Judge Crawford was born in Adelaide, Australia in 1948. He attended the University of Adelaide, receiving his Bachelor of Arts in English history and politics and his Bachelor of Laws in 1972. It was during his time at the University of Adelaide that he was introduced to international law. He continued his education at the University of Oxford, where he completed his doctorate. His doctoral thesis focused on the creation of states in international law. He was admitted as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of Australia in 1977 and called to the New South Wales Bar in 1987. In 1997, he was appointed Senior Counsel and in 1999 he was admitted to the English Bar.

Judge Crawford has an extensive and impressive practice record in international law, which includes appearing before the ICJ and other tribunals. His representation before the ICJ includes the following key contested cases:

  • Treaty dispute between Australia and Indonesia concerning the “Timor Gap” (Australia v. Portugal)
  • Dispute between Iran and the United States arising from the destruction of three offshore oil production complexes owned by the National Iranian Oil Company (Islamic Republic of Iran v. United States of America)
  
  • Dispute arising from the “1977 Treaty” signed by Hungary and Slovakia concerning the construction and operation of a System of Locks (Hungary v. Slovakia)
  • Land ownership dispute between Malaysia and Singapore (Malaysia v. Singapore)
  • Dispute between Romania and Ukraine over the maritime boundary in the Black Sea (Romania v. Ukraine)

Prior to his appointment to the ICJ, Judge Crawford was a Whewell Professor of International Law at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow at Jesus College. He has also taught international law and constitutional law at the University of Adelaide and University of Sydney. In 1990, he served as Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Sydney and in 1992 he was appointed to the International Law Commission(ILC). It was as a member of the ILC the he was responsible for the Commission’s Draft Statute for the International Criminal Court. He has also served two terms as the Director of the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law at Cambridge.

His illustrious academic and professional career has resulted in the awarding him many honors. He holds honorary doctorates from Pantheon-Sorbonne University, the University of Amsterdam, Pázmány Pèter Catholic University, and his alma mater, Adelaide University. He was awarded the Nessim Habif  World Prize by the University of Geneva in 2012 and in 2012. In addition, the American Society for International Law awarded him its Hudson Medal in 2012.

Judge Crawford’s scholarship and professional practice in international law will serve him well as he begins his tenure on the IJC.

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© 2015 – The International Judicial Academy
with assistance from the American Society of International Law.

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