2023-UNAT-1398

2023-UNAT-1398, Sergio Baltazar Arvizú Trevino

UNAT Held or UNDT Pronouncements

The UNAT noted that several months after the Secretary-General had been notified of the Judgment, the only action taken was that some responses had been elicited from four staff members alleged in the complaint to have engaged in misconduct and that “these responses alongside the 22 pages and 18 annexes” to the complaint were under review.

Noting the justification of the Secretary-General for the inaction that in the instant matter, no specific time had been set for execution, the UNAT held that the Administration had not acted as promptly as per the obligations imposed on it, "within a reasonable time".

The UNAT granted the application, in part, and ordered the Administration to execute Judgment No. 2022-UNAT-1231 within 60 days from the date of receipt of the Judgment by the parties.

Decision Contested or Judgment Appealed

By Judgment No. UNDT/2020/211, the UNDT dismissed the staff member's application challenging the decision not to convene an investigation panel to investigate his harassment complaint. The staff member appealed.

Previous UNAT judgment:

By Judgment No. 2022-UNAT-1231, the UNAT rescinded the decision not to convene an investigation panel and ordered the Secretary-General to conduct a renewed assessment of the staff member’s complaint.

The staff member filed an application for execution of the UNAT Judgment.

Legal Principle(s)

In matters of complaints of prohibited conduct, time is of the essence, thus the Administration is obliged to act promptly and in a fair and impartial manner.

The Administration is under an obligation by law in cases of prohibited conduct to act promptly, fairly and impartially. Where no specific time period has been set for compliance with an order, compliance is required within a reasonable time.

In matters which relate to the execution of judgments of the Appeals Tribunal, time is of the essence. Universally, the enforcement of orders within a reasonable period ensures that trust in and the integrity of the dispute resolution system is retained.

Outcome

Revision, correction, interpretation or execution

Outcome Extra Text

The UNAT granted the application, in part. The UNAT ordered the Administration to execute Judgment No. 2022-UNAT-1231 within 60 days from the date the present Judgment has been served on the parties.

OAJ prepared this case law summary for informational purposes only. It is no official record and should not be relied upon as an authoritative interpretation of the Tribunals' rulings. For the authoritative texts, please refer to the judgment or order rendered by the respective Tribunal. The Tribunals are the only bodies competent to interpret their respective judgments, as provided under Article 12(3) of the UNDT Statute and Article 11(3) of the UNAT Statute. Any inaccuracies in the publication are the sole responsibility of OAJ, which should be contacted directly for any correction requests. To provide comments, don't hesitate to get in touch with OAJ at oaj@un.org.

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

Sergio Baltazar Arvizú Trevino

Entity

UNJSPF

Case Number(s)

2022-1747

Tribunal

UNAT

Registry Location :

New York