Statute of the Administrative Tribunal of the International Labour Organization

Annex to the Statute of the Administrative Tribunal of the International Labour Organization

Rules of the Administrative Tribunal of the International Labour Organization adopted on 24 November 1993

Schedule

There is established by the present Statute a Tribunal to be known as the International Labour Organization Administrative Tribunal.

1. The Tribunal shall be competent to hear complaints alleging non-observance, in substance or in form, of the terms of appointment of officials of the International Labour Office, and of such provisions of the Staff Regulations as are applicable to the case.

2. The Tribunal shall be competent to settle any dispute concerning the compensation provided for in cases of invalidity, injury or disease incurred by an official in the course of his employment and to fix finally the amount of compensation, if any, which is to be paid.

3. The Tribunal shall be competent to hear any complaint of non-observance of the Staff Pensions Regulations or of rules made in virtue thereof in regard to an official or the wife, husband or children of an official, or in regard to any class of officials to which the said Regulations or the said rules apply.

4. The Tribunal shall be competent to hear disputes arising out of contracts to which the International Labour Organization is a party and which provide for the competence of the Tribunal in any case of dispute with regard to their execution.

5. The Tribunal shall also be competent to hear complaints alleging non-observance, in substance or in form, of the terms of appointment of officials and of provisions of the Staff Regulations of any other international organization meeting the standards set out in the Annex hereto which has addressed to the Director-General a declaration recognizing, in accordance with its Constitution or internal administrative rules, the jurisdiction of the Tribunal for this purpose, as well as its Rules of Procedure, and which is approved by the Governing Body.

6. The Tribunal shall be open:

(a) to the official, even if his employment has ceased, and to any person on whom the official's rights have devolved on his death;

(b) to any other person who can show that he is entitled to some right under the terms of appointment of a deceased official or under provisions of the Staff Regulations on which the official could rely.

7. Any dispute as to the competence of the Tribunal shall be decided by it, subject to the provisions of article XII.

1. The Tribunal shall consist of seven judges who shall all be of different nationalities.

2. The judges shall be appointed for a period of three years by the Conference of the International Labour Organization.

3. A meeting of the Tribunal shall be composed of three judges or, in exceptional circumstances, five, to be designated by the President, or all seven.

The Tribunal shall hold ordinary sessions at dates to be fixed by the Rules of Court, subject to there being cases on its list and to such cases being, in the opinion of the President, of a character to justify holding the session. An extraordinary session may be convened at the request of the Chairman of the Governing Body of the International Labour Office.

The Tribunal, at its discretion, may decide or decline to hold oral proceedings, including upon request of a party. The Tribunal shall decide in each case whether the oral proceedings before it or any part of them shall be public or in camera.

1. The Tribunal shall take decisions by a majority vote; judgments shall be final and without appeal.

2. The reasons for a judgment shall be stated. The judgment shall be communicated in writing to the Director-General of the International Labour Office and to the complainant.

3. Judgments shall be drawn up in a single copy, which shall be filed in the archives of the International Labour Office, where it shall be available for consultation by any person concerned.

1. A complaint shall not be receivable unless the decision impugned is a final decision and the person concerned has exhausted such other means of resisting it as are open to him under the applicable Staff Regulations.

2. To be receivable, a complaint must also have been filed within ninety days after the complainant was notified of the decision impugned or, in the case of a decision affecting a class of officials, after the decision was published.

3. Where the Administration fails to take a decision upon any claim of an official within sixty days from the notification of the claim to it, the person concerned may have recourse to the Tribunal and his complaint shall be receivable in the same manner as a complaint against a final decision. The period of ninety days provided for by the last preceding paragraph shall run from the expiration of the sixty days allowed for the taking of the decision by the Administration.

4. The filing of a complaint shall not involve suspension of the execution of the decision impugned.

In cases falling under article II, the Tribunal, if satisfied that the complaint was well founded, shall order the rescinding of the decision impugned or the performance of the obligation relied upon. If such rescinding of a decision or execution of an obligation is not possible or advisable, the Tribunal shall award the complainant compensation for the injury caused to him.

1. The administrative arrangements necessary for the operation of the Tribunal shall be made by the International Labour Office in consultation with the Tribunal.

2. Expenses occasioned by sessions of the Tribunal shall be borne by the International Labour Office.

3. Any compensation awarded by the Tribunal shall be chargeable to the budget of the International Labour Organization.

1. Subject to the provisions of the present Statute, the Tribunal shall draw up Rules of Court covering:

(a) the election of the President and Vice-President;

(b) the convening and conduct of its sessions;

(c) the rules to be followed in presenting complaints and in the subsequent procedure including intervention in the proceedings before the Tribunal by persons whose rights as officials may be affected by the judgment;

(d) the procedure to be followed with regard to complaints and disputes submitted to the Tribunal by virtue of paragraphs 3 and 4 of article II;

(e) and, generally, all matters relating to the operation of the Tribunal which are not settled by the present Statute.

2. The Tribunal may amend the Rules of Court.

The present Statute shall remain in force during the pleasure of the General Conference of the International Labour Organization. It may be amended by the Conference or such other organ of the Organization as the Conference may determine.

1. In any case in which the Governing Body of the International Labour Office or the Administrative Board of the Pensions Fund challenges a decision of the Tribunal confirming its jurisdiction, or considers that a decision of the Tribunal is vitiated by a fundamental fault in the procedure followed, the question of the validity of the decision given by the Tribunal shall be submitted by the Governing Body, for an advisory opinion, to the International Court of Justice.

2. The opinion given by the Court shall be binding.

To be entitled to recognize the jurisdiction of the Administrative Tribunal of the International Labour Organization in accordance with paragraph 5 of article II of its Statute, an international organization must either be intergovernmental in character, or fulfil the following conditions:

a) it shall be clearly international in character, having regard to its membership, structure and scope of activity;

b) it shall not be required to apply any national law in its relations with its officials, and shall enjoy immunity from legal process as evidenced by a headquarters agreement concluded with the host country; and

c) it shall be endowed with functions of a permanent nature at the international level and offer, in the opinion of the Governing Body, sufficient guarantees as to its institutional capacity to carry out such functions as well as guarantees of compliance with the Tribunal's judgments.

The Statute of the Tribunal applies in its entirety to such international organizations subject to the following provisions which, in cases affecting any one of these organizations, are applicable as follows:

Article VI, paragraph 2

The reasons for a judgment shall be stated. The judgment shall be communicated in writing to the Director-General of the International Labour Office, to the Director-General of the international organization against which the complaint is filed, and to the complainant.

Article VI, paragraph 3

Judgments shall be drawn up in two copies, of which one shall be filed in the archives of the International Labour Office and the other in the archives of the international organization against which the complaint is filed, where they shall be available for consultation by any person concerned.

Article IX, paragraph 2

Expenses occasioned by the sessions or hearings of the Administrative Tribunal shall be borne by the international organization against which the complaint is filed.

Article IX, paragraph 3

Any compensation awarded by the Tribunal shall be chargeable to the budget of the international organization against which the complaint is filed.

Article XII, paragraph 1

In any case in which the Executive Board of an international organization which has made the declaration specified in article II. paragraph 5, of the Statute of the Tribunal challenges a decision of the Tribunal confirming its jurisdiction, or considers that a decision of the Tribunal is vitiated by a fundamental fault in the procedure followed, the question of the validity of the decision given by the Tribunal shall be submitted by the Executive Board concerned, for an advisory opinion, to the International Court of Justice.

1. The Tribunal shall elect a President and a Vice-President.

2. Election shall be by vote of the majority of its members, any who cannot attend for the purpose being entitled to vote by correspondence.

3. The President shall direct its proceedings and represent it in all administrative matters.

4. If the President is unable to act, the Vice-President or, if the Vice-President is unable to act, the senior judge shall exercise the functions of President at and between sessions.

The Tribunal shall have a Registrar and an Assistant Registrar appointed by the Director-General of the International Labour Office.

1. The Tribunal shall hold sessions whenever the caseload so warrants.

2. The President shall set and may amend the dates of each session of the Tribunal and shall invite members to attend for such period as he determines.

1. A complaint filed against an organization which has recognized the jurisdiction of the Tribunal and any communication relating to such complaint shall be addressed to the President through the Registrar.

1. The complainant may plead his own case or appoint for the purpose an agent who shall be a serving or former official of an organization which has recognized the Tribunal's jurisdiction or of the United Nations, or a member of a bar in a member State of one of those organizations, or, with leave from the President, someone who is qualified to deal with issues relating to the international civil service.

2. The complainant's agent shall provide, in English or French, a power of attorney.

3. The defendant organization's agent shall be one of its own serving or former officials, or a serving or former official of another organization which has recognized the Tribunal's jurisdiction or of the United Nations, or a member of a bar in a member State of one of those organizations, or, with leave from the President, someone who is qualified to deal with issues relating to the international civil service.

4. Where the defendant organization's agent is not a serving or former official, it shall provide, in English or French, a power of attorney.

1. The complainant or the complainant's agent shall:

(a) fill up in English or French and sign the complaint form prescribed in the Schedule to these Rules;

(b) append thereto a brief in the same language stating the facts of the case and the pleas and the original or a certified copy or transcript of any item of evidence adduced in support;

(c) append to any text which is not in English or French a certified translation into the language chosen in accordance with (a); and

3. If satisfied that the complaint meets the requirements of these Rules, the Registrar shall forward one copy to the defendant organization.

4. The language chosen in accordance with l(a) shall be used in any subsequent written pleadings.

1. If the President considers a complaint to be clearly irreceivable or devoid of merit he may instruct the Registrar to forward it to the defendant organization for information only.

2. When it takes up such complaint the Tribunal may either dismiss it summarily as clearly irreceivable or devoid of merit or else order that the procedure prescribed below shall be followed.

1. In any case which is not dealt with in accordance with Article 7(1) the defendant organization shall despatch its reply to the Registrar within 30 days of the date of receipt of the complaint.

2. It shall:

(a) append to its reply the original or a certified copy or transcript of any item of evidence adduced in support;

(b) append to any text which is not in English or French a certified translation into the language chosen in accordance with Article 6(1)(a); and

(c) supply five copies of its reply and of any appended item of evidence and certify them by the signature of its agent to be true.

3. If it files no reply within the time limit the written pleadings shall close.

1. If satisfied that the defendant organization's reply meets the requirements of these Rules, the Registrar shall forward one copy to the complainant or to the complainant's agent, who may file a rejoinder within 30 days of the date of receipt.

2. If no rejoinder is filed within the time limit the written pleadings shall close.

3. If a rejoinder is filed, the Registrar shall forward one copy to the defendant organization, which may file a surrejoinder within 30 days of the date of receipt.

4. If no surrejoinder is filed within the time limit the written pleadings shall close.

5. If a surrejoinder is filed, the Registrar shall forward one copy to the complainant or to the complainant's agent.

6. The President may, on his own motion or on the application of either party, order the submission of a further written statement or document and may set the time limit for such submission.

7. The complainant or the complainant's agent shall supply with the rejoinder and with any further written statement or document, and the defendant organization shall supply with the surrejoinder and with any further written statement or document,

(a) a certified translation into the language chosen in accordance with Article 6(1)(a) of any text which is not in English or French and

(b) five certified copies of all submissions.

1. When the President considers the pleadings to be sufficient he shall instruct the Registrar to put the complaint on the list of a session of the Tribunal.

2. The Registrar shall inform the parties before the opening of that session of the inclusion of the complaint in the list and of the dates of the session.

3. The Tribunal or, between sessions, the President shall rule on an application by either party for a stay of proceedings or for the adjournment of a listed case to a later session.

1 . The Tribunal may, on its own motion or on the application of either party, order such measures of investigation as it deems fit, including the appearance of the parties before it, the hearing of expert and other witnesses, the consultation of any competent international authority, and expert inquiry.

2. Any measure of investigation may be by letters rogatory if the Tribunal or, between sessions, the President so orders.

1. An application by either party tor hearings shall identify any witness whom that party wants the Tribunal to hear and the issues which the party wants the witness to address.

2. The Tribunal shall determine the conduct of any hearings.

3. Hearings shall include oral submissions by the parties and may, with leave from the Tribunal, include oral testimony by any witness.

4. A witness shall make the following declaration before giving evidence:

"I solemnly declare that I shall speak without hatred and without fear, and shall speak the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth."

5. An expert witness shall make the same declaration as any other witness and shall then make the following further declaration:

"I solemnly declare that I shall give evidence to the best of my knowledge and belief."

1. Anyone to whom the Tribunal is open under Article II of the Statute may intervene in a complaint on the grounds that the ruling which the Tribunal is to make may affect him.

2. An organization which has recognized the Tribunal's jurisdiction may intervene in a complaint on the grounds that the ruling which the Tribunal is to make may affect it.

3. The Tribunal or, between sessions, the President may instruct the Registrar to give notice of a complaint to any third party if it appears that such third party may want to make submissions.

4. To be receivable, an application to intervene shall be delivered at the Registry before the opening of the session for which the complaint is listed.

The Tribunal or, between sessions, the President may shorten or lengthen any time limit set in accordance with these Rules.

The President may between sessions make provisional orders, without prejudice to the ultimate ruling by the Tribunal on the parties' rights, on an application by either party for measures to establish the existence of any tact that is material to the dispute.

The Tribunal shall, in exercise of the powers vested in it by Article X of the Statute, deal with any matter which these Rules do not expressly provide for.

These Rules shall come into force on 1 May 1994.

The complaint form referred to in Article 6(1)(a) of these Rules shall consist of questions under the following five heads:

1. The complainant.

2. The defendant organization.

3. The challenged decision.

4. The pleadings (relief claimed, list of documents, etc.).

5. Special applications.

The form may be obtained from the Registrar.

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