United Nations Photo

Judge Peter Tomka (Slovakia) was elected President of the Internatioanl Court of Justice (ICJ) on 6 February 2012. The President and the Vice-President are elected by the Members of the Court every three years by secret ballot. The President presides at all meetings of the Court; he/she directs its work and supervises its administration, with the assistance of a Budgetary and Administrative Committee and of various other committees, all composed of Members of the Court. During judicial deliberations, the President has a casting vote in the event of votes being equally divided. In The Hague, where he/she is obliged to reside, the President of the Court takes precedence over the doyen of the diplomatic corps.