Justice Chaskalson was elected President of the ICJ in March 2002. A Commissioner since 1995, his commitment to the legal struggle for the promotion and protection of human rights, especially in South Africa, dates back to the 1960's.

Most recently in November 2001, Justice Chaskalson was appointed to South Africa's highest judicial post, that of Chief Justice. Since June 1994, he holds the position of president of South Africa's newly established Constitutional Court.

Justice Chaskalson was highly engaged in the development of South Africa's interim Constitution in 1993, providing expertise on constitutional matters and assisting in its drafting. He was also involved in the drafting of the Constitution of Namibia.

Justice Chaskalson's support for the development of the judiciary in South Africa has been extensive. He was a member of the Johannesburg Bar Council between 1967 to 1971 and from 1973 to 1984 and its Chairman in 1976 and 1982. He was also Vice Chairman between 1982-1987, and Joint Honorary President since 1994 of the General Council of the Bar of South Africa.

Since 1994 he has been a member of the Judicial Service Commission and is currently its Chairman. The South African Judicial Service Commission has an important role in the appointment of judges and advising the national government on any matter relating to the judiciary or the administration of justice.

In 1978 Justice Chaskalson assisted in the creation of the Legal Resources Centre, a leading South African civil society organisation. As its director from November 1978 to September 1993, he was also leading counsel in several cases that challenged the implementation of apartheid laws by the Government.

In addition, during his career at the Bar, he appeared as counsel on behalf of members of the liberation movement in several major political trials, including the Rivonia Trial of 1963/1964 during which Mr. Nelson Mandela and other leaders of the African National Congress were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.

He was admitted to the Johannesburg Bar in May 1956 and took silk in July 1971. Justice Chaskalson, a South African national, holds his LLB from the University of the Witwatersrand. He also holds honorary doctorates from the University of Natal, the University of the Witwatersrand, the University of Port Elizabeth, and Rhodes University, all in South Africa, and from the University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.