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World Court

World Court

3 5.0
An international court that settles disputes between countries and gives advice on international law
  • proper noun
translation icon : Corte Mundial
  • Submit this matter to appropriate international bodies, including the United Nations and the World Court.
  • go to the World Court

Examples

  • I do not know of another time when Judge Stephen Schwebel, the President of the World Court, and an American, voted against the United States.

    Academic text (1998)
  • Rulings made by the World Court help establish international legal precedents.

  • I learned much about the World Court in the process of this case.

    Academic text (2000)
  • The case was discussed in front of the World Court, and Iran won.

    Academic text (2007)
  • Neither did the reparations the World Court ordered the United States to pay.

    Academic text (2007)
  • The United States and Canada, in late 1981, brought this longstanding controversy to the World Court by special agreement for submission to the first Chamber ever established under the Statute of the Court.

    Academic text (2000)
  • My twelfth recommendation also goes to the heart of accountability: the Charter must be amended to provide that the secretary-general can request an advisory opinion of the World Court on any legal question concerning the organization.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The UAE has proposed taking the issue to the World Court in The Hague to seek a resolution.

  • In an important case, the World Court ruled that both countries must negotiate a peaceful solution.

Synonyms

court
vsWorld Court
  • Formal
1.4

A place where a judge hears and decides legal cases

is the UN institution tasked with resolving state disputes and giving legal opinions
court of law
vsWorld Court
76 3.2

A place where a judge hears and decides cases about the law

is the UN organ used specifically to settle state disputes and advise on law
2 4.2

A court that settles legal disputes between countries and gives legal advice to the United Nations

is the same institution but called differently in ordinary usage
law court
vsWorld Court
2 3.1

A place where a judge hears cases and gives decisions

is an international UN judicial organ for state-level disputes and advisory work
court of justice
vsWorld Court
  • Formal
2 3.8

A place where judges decide legal cases and apply the law

is a UN body focused on disputes between states and advisory opinions

Surface Forms

Morphology

world + court

The compound combines 'world' (global) and 'court' (a judicial forum), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a court dealing with international or global legal matters. This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common and, although a learner might not know the exact UN institution name, the basic meaning is transparently derivable.

Etymology

World Court is a simple name that gives a clear image: a court (judges in a room) for the whole world (many countries). People used this name for the International Court of Justice, so the phrase means 'a court that settles legal disputes between countries'.