Statute of the International Court of Justice

The Statute of the International Court of Justice is an integral part of the United Nations Charter, as specified by Chapter XIV of the United Nations Charter, which established the International Court of Justice. 
Structure.
The Statute is divided into 5 chapters and consists of 70 articles. The Statute begins with Article 1 proclaiming:
The 69 Articles are grouped in 5 Chapters:
Under Article 38.2, the court is allowed to decide a case ex aequo et bono if the parties agree thereto.
Parties to the Statute.
All UN member states are parties to the Statute by virtue of their ratification of the UN Charter. Under Article 93(2) of the UN Charter, states which are not a member of the UN may become a party to the Statute, subject to the recommendation of the United Nations Security Council and approval of the UNGA. As of 2015, neither of the UN observer states, Palestine and the Vatican City, nor any other state are parties to the statute under these provisions. Switzerland (1948-2002), Liechtenstein (1950-1990), San Marino (1954-1992), Japan (1954-1956), and Nauru (1988-1999) were all parties to the Statute prior to becoming UN member states.