2018-UNAT-883, Khisa
UNAT considered whether exceptional circumstances should apply to the Appellant’s appeal, under Article 8(3) of the UNDT Statute. UNAT held that UNDT was correct in its conclusion that absent a full explanation for the five-month delay after her discharge from the hospital, the Appellant could not avail herself of the plea of exceptional circumstances. UNAT held that UNDT did not err in finding that the application was not receivable. UNAT dismissed the appeal.
The Applicant filed an application with UNDT, appealing the administrative decision imposing the disciplinary measure of separation of service. The Secretary-General filed a motion for summary judgment, contending that the application was not receivable. UNDT dismissed the Applicant’s application as not receivable because she did not file it in a timely fashion, under Article 8(1)(d)(ii) of the UNDT Statute. UNDT also held that the Applicant’s motion for suspension, waiver, or extension of time limit could not be entertained because it was not filed before the filing of her substantive application, under Article 8(3) of the UNDT Statute.
In cases where management evaluation is not required, in terms of Article 8(1)(d)(ii) of the UNDT Statute, the application to the UNDT must be filed within 90 calendar days of the applicant’s receipt of the administrative decision. An application for waiver of timelines ordinarily must be filed before the application is made and not afterwards.