The Application for provisional measures shall be examined by the Registry in accordance with Rule 16. The Registry shall in addition examine whether any Protective letter relevant for the Application is recorded in the register.

Where main proceedings on the merits of the case have not yet been started before the Court, Rule 17 (date of receipt, recording in the register, action number, assignment to panel) and Rule 18 (designation of judge-rapporteur by presiding judge) shall apply mutatis mutandis. In urgent cases, the presiding judge may decide that he or an experienced judge of the panel, acting as single judge, may decide on the Application in accordance with Rules 209 to 213 with a reduced time-table.

Where main proceedings on the merits of the case have already been started before the Court, the Application for provisional measures shall immediately be forwarded to the panel to which the action has been assigned or to the single judge. In urgent cases (where the action has not been assigned to a single judge), the presiding judge may decide that he or the judge-rapporteur, acting as single judge, may decide on the Application in accordance with Rules 209 to 213 with a reduced time-table.

The single judge deciding on the Application for provisional measures shall have all necessary powers of the Court.

Relation with Statute: Article 19