2015-UNAT-523

2015-UNAT-523, Portillo Moya

UNAT Held or UNDT Pronouncements

UNAT considered an appeal by the Secretary-General. UNAT held that UNDT erred in law in concluding that the imposed disciplinary sanction was disproportionate and consequently substituting it for a lesser one. UNAT held that serious misconduct was established and the disciplinary measure of separation from service without termination indemnity was proportionate. UNAT noted that the misconduct put public health at risk as the food was distributed with altered expiration dates to hide the fact of its expiration. UNAT held that the imposed sanction was neither absurd nor disproportionate and should not have been disturbed by judicial review. UNAT allowed the appeal and vacated the UNDT judgment.

Decision Contested or Judgment Appealed

The Applicant contested the proportionality of her sanction for misconduct, namely her separation from service without termination indemnity. UNDT reduced the sanction to separation from service with termination indemnity.

Legal Principle(s)

For disciplinary cases, the role of judicial review is to ascertain whether the facts on which the sanction is based have been established, whether the established facts qualify as misconduct, and whether the sanction is proportionate to the offence.

Outcome

Appeal granted

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The judgment summaries were generally prepared in English. They were translated into French and are being reviewed for accuracy of the translation.

Full Judgment

Applicants/ Appellants

Portillo Moya

Entity

WFP

Case Number(s)

2014-600

Tribunal

UNAT

Registry Location :

New York