SWEARING-IN OF UNITED NATIONS APPEALS TRIBUNAL JUDGE MARY FAHERTY

The Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, Mr. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, presided over a solemn ceremony held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva on Monday, 27 June 2011 for the swearing-in of Judge Mary Faherty of the United Nations Appeals Tribunal (“Appeals Tribunal”).

Judge Faherty (Ireland) was elected on 28 January 2011 by the General Assembly to replace Judge Rose Boyko (Canada), who had resigned for personal reasons, as a judge of the Appeals Tribunal. She joins the other six judges of the Appeals Tribunal, Judge Jean Courtial, President (France), Sophia Adinyira, First Vice-President (Ghana), Kamaljit Singh Garewal, Second Vice-President (India), Mark P. Painter (USA), Inés Weinberg de Roca (Argentina), and Luis María Simón (Uruguay). All attended the swearing-in ceremony, as did Registrar Mr. Weicheng Lin.

Judge Faherty is currently a judge of the Circuit Court of Ireland and a Member of a Tribunal of Inquiry established by Parliament, a position she has held since 2002. She was also appointed Chairperson of the Employment Appeals Tribunal of Ireland in 1995 and served as a Vice Chairperson of the same Tribunal from 1989 to 1995.

Speaking after the swearing-in, Mr. Tokayev thanked Judge Faherty for accepting this important assignment in the service of the United Nations and wished her great success. He noted that in the two years since the establishment of the new system of internal justice of the United Nations, and thanks to the efforts of judges of both the United Nations Dispute Tribunal (“Dispute Tribunal”) and the Appeals Tribunal, remarkable progress had been made in terms of expeditious review of cases, promotion of justice, and cultivation of accountability.

The Appeals Tribunal is an appellate court established by the General Assembly to review appeals against judgments rendered by the Dispute Tribunal. It also hears and passes judgment on appeals from decisions taken by the Standing Committee acting on behalf of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board and by those agencies and entities that have accepted jurisdiction of the Appeals Tribunal. The Appeals Tribunal normally reviews appeals in three-member panels. Their judgments are final and binding on the parties.

The Appeals Tribunal is based in New York. It holds sessions in New York, Geneva or Nairobi, as required by caseload. It held its first session in Geneva in 2010 and will hold its fifth session, also in Geneva, from 27 June to 8 July 2011. The Appeals Tribunal will orally announce the outcome of its deliberations on 34 cases at the end of its summer session, on Friday, 8 July 2011 at 11 a.m. in the Council Chamber. These proceedings are open to the public.


For use of information media; not an official record

DG11/004E