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Office of the Agent
Office of Belize’s Agent to the International Court of Justice
Following the decision of the people in a referendum on 8 May 2019 to refer the territorial dispute with Guatemala to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the government appointed an Agent and Co-Agent to the ICJ and established the Office of the Agent (OOTA) to the ICJ.
OOTA manages all issues relating to the case and serves as the interlocutor between the Government of Belize and the International Court of Justice. The Office is managed by Chief Operations Officer Mariana Verde. OOTA works closely with a team of specialists in various fields including international law, geography and hydrography.
The Court was seised of the case Guatemala’s Territorial, Insular and Maritime Claim (Guatemala/Belize) on 7 June 2019 and each party has submitted two sets of pleadings to the Court. Belize awaits notice from the Court setting dates for the oral hearings.
In November 2022, Belize instituted proceedings against the Republic of Honduras concerning sovereignty over the Sapodilla Cayes, which Honduras claims as part of its territory since 1981. Belize filed its Memorial in June 2023 and Honduras’ Counter-Memorial is pending.
Official documents related to the cases can be found at the International Court of Justice’s website through the following links:
Guatemala’s Territorial, Insular and Maritime Claim (Guatemala/Belize) (icj-cij.org)
Sovereignty over the Sapodilla Cayes (Belize v. Honduras) (icj-cij.org)
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