A Direct Acknowledgement of the Positivist Theory of International Law: Colombia V. Peru, [1950] ICJ Rep 266

The nature of International Law is often divided into the Naturalist and the Positivist worldviews. The former professes the supremacy of the Law of Nature, whereas the latter champion the will of the sovereign State. Jurists have often exchanged arguments fervently supporting their causes for either side in attempts to present a realistic approach towards the chief characteristics of International Law. In the Asylum case, as it is now famously known, the International Court of Justice gives weight to the independent will of the defendant by endorsing its demurral towards Customary Law despite it being considered as a source of International Law.