51ÁÔÆæ

The UNDT found that the Applicant had been grossly negligent in that a duty-conscious and vigilant Logistics Assistant in the Applicant¡¯s position ought to have reasonably foreseen that the documents in possession of Mr Weah were sufficient to enable him to misappropriate the containers. The sanction was fair and proportionate. The Application therefore failed. Negligence test: Three elements which must be established to prove gross negligence; namely, (1) a failure in the form of an act or omission to exercise the requisite standard of care; (2) the standard of care required is that which a...

Management evaluation: The Tribunal can only suspend an administrative decision that is subject to an ongoing management evaluation.Cancellation of vacancy announcements are administrative decisions that have been implemented and therefore can not be subject of a suspension of action application. The Applicant had not sought management evaluation of the ongoing selection process as such the Tribunal found that it could not be subject to a suspension of action application.

The Applicant¡¯s reassignment to ONUCI was frustrated by the force majeure, the outbreak of violence in C?te d¡¯Ivoire and this event was beyond the control of the Administration. There were no exceptional circumstances that would have justified placing the Applicant on special leave with full pay between 1 July 2011 and 6 December 2011.The Applicant was lawfully placed on SLWOP upon the expiry of his provisional reassignment to ONUCI. The Applicant is not entitled to any relief for the delay in receiving certain written tests as a result of the disconnection of his UN webmail address. However...

The UNDT found that the decision to summarily dismiss the Applicant was wrongful. Assault: A charge of assault is a criminal charge and it was not within UNICEF competence to investigate a criminal offence or a tort alleged to have been committed. Identification of staff members: The Tribunal took judicial notice of the fact that when an international staff member finds him or herself facing an imminent threat of physical harm or is placed in some other peculiar position especially in a foreign country, it is reasonable to identify oneself as a UN Staff Member. Sexual harassment: It is unusual...

The practice of placing reliance upon recordings in initial fact finding exercises and interview notes of appointed investigators in an effort to establish gross misconduct warranting summary dismissal before the Tribunal is grossly inadequate and cannot establish the facts in issue. An investigator must be committed to ascertaining the facts of the case through relevant inquiry involving the questioning of witnesses, forensic evidence where necessary and identification and collection of relevant documentary evidence. The investigator¡¯s findings should be based on substantiated facts and...

The Applicant was engaged in an unauthorized outside activity. The Applicant¡¯s unauthorized outside activity whilst providing her personal financial gain, did not result in an actual conflict of interest as defined by the applicable rule. The investigators had an obligation, in accordance with the universal principles of natural justice, to inform the Applicant of her right to the assistance of Counsel during investigations. The doctrine of proportionality is applicable in this case to reduce the Applicant¡¯s summary dismissal to a written censure in line with the Secretary- General¡¯s practice...

The inherent jurisdiction of the Tribunal confers it with power to deal with contemptuous conduct and is necessary to safeguard its judicial functions. This power need not be defined in the Tribunal¡¯s Statute or in its Rules of Procedure. Willful disobedience of the Tribunal¡¯s orders is contempt and is a direct attack upon the jurisdiction of the Tribunal and its power to undertake the responsibilities with which it has been entrusted in its Statute by the General Assembly. UNON management while disregarding the authority of UNAT in Villamoran on the duty of parties 51ÁÔÆæ...

Receivability/Waive or suspend MEU deadlines: It has been established in the UNDT and the United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT) jurisprudence as well in the provisions of the UNDT Statute that the UNDT does not have the power to suspend or waive deadlines regardingtime limits for management evaluation. The Tribunal, being a creature of statutory law, cannot go beyond its mandate.If there was concrete evidence to show that the Ombudsman was seized of the matter within the stipulated time limits and if there was evidence showing the date on which the Ombudsman acknowledged receipt of the matter...

The Tribunal observed that the Applicant conceded, in his closing submission, that the distribution and storage of pornographic material using the UNDP equipment constituted misconduct. Therefore, the Tribunal considered the characterization of this charge settled and did not go on to examine it. On due process, the Tribunal found that the investigation was hasty and afforded the; Applicant little opportunity to prepare for his case. On proportionality, the Tribunal held that the lack of due process shown on the part of the Respondent while investigating the Applicant must necessarily count to...

The non-renewal of the Applicant¡¯s appointment was predicated on her harassment complaint of 12 April 2012 against her supervisor. The Tribunal finds and holds that the three elements for a grant of an order for suspension of action have been established in this case.

The Tribunal finds that the Salary case was never properly before the Tribunal and is not receivable. It is within the discretionary authority of the Secretary-General to reconsider whether the existence of an injury is attributable to the performance of official duties. In this case, the Secretary-General has refused to exercise that discretion. The Applicant¡¯s claims in as far as they rely on art. 11 of Appendix D to the Staff Rules are therefore not receivable. With respect to all of the Applicant¡¯s other claims including her claim for DSA and air ticket for her daughter¡¯s travel in 2002...

Attempted theft: In the instant case, the Applicant¡¯s counsel cites the 23 June 2011 Judgment and argued that ¡°it follows that whereas the offence of an attempt to commit an act that could amount, if completed, to misconduct is not envisaged as a sanctionable offence within the prevailing legislative framework of the United Nations, the dismissal of the Applicant must be held to have been ultra vires.¡± This interpretation and application of the Tribunal¡¯s reasoning in the said judgment to this case and the Applicant¡¯s circumstances is misconceived and misleading. This is because the offence of...

Certification of sick leave: If some staff members as a matter of practice communicated directly with the MSD rather than through their mission, such practice does not detract from or modify written legislation.Recognised regional medical centres: A country in serious political, economic and security situation was unlikely to be the place to seek adequate medical treatment for an ailment recognised by the organization as a condition for medical evacuation. Recovery of overpayment: The United Nations being a humanitarian organization and in providing humanitarian assistance worldwide, needs to...

Not only did Counsel for the Respondent initially refuse to take part in the proceedings because submissions were being filed and submitted through the eFiling portal, she further failed 51ÁÔÆæ the Tribunal¡¯s Order granting her an extension of 30 days. This failure, in the circumstances is an abuse of the process of the Tribunal. The Tribunal is entitled to enter, on its own Motion, a default judgment in this case. This means that in the present case, the Tribunal shall rely on the facts as presented by the Applicant and apply the relevant law to these facts. Upon his separation from...

The investigation against the Applicant lacked integrity and credibility. The investigator was incompetent, exhibited bias and lacked objectivity and fairness. The Investigator¡¯s note-taker was not only allowed to conduct part of the investigation by solely administering questions to two witnesses, she was also allowed the liberty of expressing her views on how some evidence she had elicited from a witness should not change impressions earlier formed. The investigation report was biased, unreliable and unfair. The characterisation of certain facts was done in a manner intended to draw only...

The Tribunal held that the Applicant had not adduced any arguments to substantiate the claim that the compensation recommended by JAB was inappropriate, insufficient or improper.

The Tribunal concluded that there was cogent evidence that extraneous factors were taken into account in the decision not to extend the Applicant¡¯s contract. The Tribunal thus held that the Applicant had sufficiently discharged his burden of proof. He showed that the actions of the Respondent¡¯s agents were unfair, improperly motivated, and wholly arbitrary.

A decisive or material fact as per art. 29 of the Tribunal¡¯s Rules of Procedure is one that was not known at the time the judgment was given. The said fact must be of such significant weight that its consideration in the case should lead to a revision of the judgment. The Dispute Tribunal has power to revise the judgments of the former UN Administrative Tribunal, being its successor and subject to compliance with the provisions of art. 29 of the Tribunal¡¯s Rules of Procedure. The issue of power to suspend a staff member during the disciplinary process is a matter of law and not of fact.

Non-renewal The Chief Administrative Officer¡¯s decision not to renew the Applicant¡¯s contract was arbitrarily taken. Downsizing In cases of downsizing, there is generally some established criteria put in place to ensure accountability and transparency of the process. In the present case, there was no evidence of such criteria and the Tribunal found that the Applicant was deliberately reassigned to another unit in order to make it possible for the downsizing axe to fall on him. Expectancy of renewal Applicant had a legitimate expectancy of renewal of contract considering that the Personnel...