The Court is composed of 15 judges elected by the General Assembly and the Security Council, voting independently. They are chosen on the basis of their qualifications, and care is taken to ensure that the principal legal systems of the world are represented in the Court. No two judges may be from the same country. The judges serve a nine-year term and my be re-elected. They cannot engage in any other occupation during their term of office.
In December 2008, Xue was appointed as China's first ambassador to the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Her previous job was ambassador to the Netherlands and representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. She has also been head of the department of treaty and law in the Foreign Ministry.