<P> The International Court of Justice has jurisdiction in two types of cases: contentious cases between states in which the court produces binding rulings between states that agree, or have previously agreed, to submit to the ruling of the court; and advisory opinions, which provide reasoned, but non-binding, rulings on properly submitted questions of international law, usually at the request of the United Nations General Assembly . Advisory opinions do not have to concern particular controversies between states, though they often do . </P> <P> The key principle is that the Court only has jurisdiction on the basis of consent . The court has no true compulsory jurisdiction . Jurisdiction is often a key question for the Court, because it is challenged by the respondent . At the Preliminary Objections phase, a respondent may challenge (i) jurisdiction and / or (ii) admissibility of the case . Article 36 outlines four bases on which the Court's jurisdiction may be founded . </P> <P> Only states may be parties in contentious cases before the ICJ . Individuals, corporations, parts of a federal state, NGOs, UN organs and self - determination groups are excluded from direct participation in cases, although the Court may receive information from public international organisations . This does not preclude non-state interests from being the subject of proceedings if one state brings the case against another . For example, a state may, in case of "diplomatic protection", bring a case on behalf of one of its nationals or corporations . </P>

What is the contentious jurisdiction of the icj