SECRETARY-GENERAL SEEKS JUDICIAL NOMINATIONS FOR

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000625 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AORC APER PREL UNGA UNGA UNGA SUBJECT: SECRETARY-GENERAL SEEKS JUDICIAL NOMINATIONS FOR NEW UN SYSTEM OF INTERNAL JUSTICE REF: A. USUN 562 ¶B. USUN 413 ¶C. USUN/IO EMAIL (WILCOX/HACKETT)-04/18/08 ¶D. USUN 491 ¶E. STATE 37257 ¶F. STATE 51372 BEGIN SUMMARY: 1. In connection with the UN General Assembly's decision in resolution 62/228 to establish the new UN Dispute Tribunal and UN Appeals Tribunal as of January 1, 2009, the Secretary-General has asked UN Member States to nominate judges for the new tribunals by July 21 (para 2). The Secretary-General's request also included the UN's job announcement for the judicial positions (para 3). END SUMMARY. ¶2. BEGIN TEXT: 26 June 2008 Excellency, I am writing to you in reference to the positions of judges of the United Nations Dispute Tribunal and United Nations Appeals Tribunal. As you may recall, the General Assembly, in its resolution 62/228 of 22 December 2007, established the basic framework of a new system of administration of justice in the United Nations, to be in place as of 1 January 2009. It will comprise a two-tier formal system with a first instance United Nations Dispute Tribunal and a United Nations Appeals Tribunal as an appellate instance. The United Nations Dispute Tribunal shall be composed of three full-time judges, to be located in New York, Geneva and Nairobi, and two half-time judges. The United Nations Appeals Tribunal shall be composed of seven judges. By the same resolution, the General Assembly established a five-member Internal Justice Council to, inter alia, provide its views and recommendations to the General Assembly on two or three candidates for each vacancy in the two new Tribunals and to liaise with the Office of Human Resources Management on issues related to the search for suitable candidates for the positions of judges. Appointments of judges will be made by the General Assembly. The General Assembly further decided that judges for both Tribunals shall be of high moral character and shall have judicial experience in the field of administrative law or its equivalent, within one or more national jurisdictions. Judges are required to have at least 10 years of judicial experience for the United Nations Dispute Tribunal and at least 15 years of judicial experience for the United Nations Appeals Tribunal. With this in mind, the United Nations is soliciting candidates for the United Nations Dispute Tribunal and the United Nations Appeals Tribunal. In order to draw from a wide pool of candidates for both Tribunals, a public vacancy announcement is being issued, calling for interested individuals to submit their applications by 21 July 2008 in order to give sufficient time for the Internal Justice Council to formulate its views and recommendations on candidates, in line with General Assembly resolution 62/228. I invite your Government to bring the vacancy announcement attached to this letter to the attention of qualified candidates from your country, including female candidates. I would also note that the conditions of service of the judges are subject to further decisions of the General Assembly on the new system of administration of justice in the United Nations, including the final adoption of the statutes of the two Tribunals. Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration. Ban Ki Moon END TEXT. ¶3. BEGIN TEXT: Judges of the United Nations Dispute Tribunal (3 Full-Time & 2 Half-Time Judges) located in New York, Geneva and Nairobi JUDGES OF THE UNITED NATIONS APPEALS TRIBUNAL (7 JUDGES) Sessions to be held at dates to be fixed by the rules of the Appeals Tribunal The United Nations is in the process of establishing a new internal system for the administration of justice to resolve employment-related disputes in cases, for example, of discrimination, harassment, abuse of authority and retaliation for reporting misconduct. The new system, anticipated to commence operation as of 1 January 2009, will include a two-tier judicial system composed of a first instance United Nations Dispute Tribunal (UNDT) and an appellate instance United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT). The United Nations is inviting applications for: --3 full-time judges, one each in New York, Geneva and Nairobi, to constitute the UNDT --2 half-time judges to complement the UNDT (location to be determined) --7 part-time judges of the UNAT, based in New York; sessions to be determined by the rules of UNAT. Persons applying to serve as judges of the Tribunals should be of high moral character. In the case of the UNDT, candidates should have at least 10 years, and in the case of UNAT, 15 years, of judicial experience in the field of administrative law, or the equivalent within one or more national jurisdictions. The Judges shall be appointed by the General Assembly from candidates recommended by the United Nations Internal Justice Council, an independent body established by the General Assembly, comprising two members nominated by staff, two nominated by the Administration and an independent chairperson chosen by consensus by the other four members. At UNDT level, candidates will have to preside over contested trials. At the UNDT and UNAT levels, extensive judgment writing will be required. In identifying candidates for inclusion in the list to be presented to the General Assembly, the Internal Justice Council will give due consideration to questions of geographic and gender balance. Applications: Interested candidates are invited to submit a cover letter, including the preferred Tribunal and location, and curriculum vitae by email to internaljusticecouncil-application@un.org or by facsimile to 1-917-367-0524, to be received by 21st July 2008. The curriculum vitae must include: the date of birth nationality, gender, language skills, contact details, including telephone numbers and an e-mail address at which the candidate can be reached through March 2009, as well as a full career and educational profile, an example of a judgment delivered by the candidate, or a legal opinion or other equivalent written work, and the names and e-mail addresses of two senior legal professionals able to attest to the moral character and standing of the candidate. A working knowledge of English or French is required. The appointment of all judges is subject to the approval by the General Assembly of the Statutes of the Tribunal, which have not yet been adopted. Delays in that approval may affect the appointment process and proposed dates of commencement. Prospective candidates should be aware that until the Statutes are adopted, the Tribunals will not be constituted and appointments cannot be made. The Secretary-General has proposed to the General Assembly that the UNDT judges be remunerated at a level equivalent to D-2. (For indicative purposes, the annual net salary levels at D-2 step IV single rate, including post adjustment, in effect as from 1 May 2008 are as follows: US$164, 015 (New York),US$ 191,396 (Geneva) and US $142,736 (Nairobi). Additional allowances may apply). The Secretary-General has also proposed to the General Assembly that the UNAT judges receive an honorarium equivalent to that paid to the judges of the International Labour Organization Administrative Tribunal, currently CHF 3000 for each case for the rapporteur, and CHF 750 for each judge signatory. The final remuneration package for the UNDT and UNAT is subject to approval by the General Assembly. Queries concerning these positions may be addressed to the above email address or fax number. End Text. Khalilzad