Dissenting Opinion by Judge Levi Carneiro (translation)

Document Number
021-19540713-ADV-01-04-EN
Parent Document Number
021-19540713-ADV-01-00-EN
Document File
Bilingual Document File

DISSENTING OPINION RY JI7L)GE LEVI CARNEIRO

[Translation]
Having, to my iregret, given an answer different froni that of
the Court to the cluestions submitted to it, 1 must set out very
briefly the groundc; for my opinion.

In order to rescilve these questions, it seems to me that the
system of the United Nations regarded as a whole is of more
importance than tlne literal meaning of a fcw words taken from
the Statute and the Kegulations. Indced, even with regard to
literal interpretation, this Court has already affirmed a principlc
laid down by the Permanent Court of International Justice :

".... words musi' be iiiterpreted in the sense whicli tliey would
normally 1iaL.elin their context, unless such interpretation would
General Assembly for the Admission ofsurd" aCState to the United
Nations, I.C.J. Reports 1950, p. 8).

1. The Lnited Nations Organization is based on "the principle
.of the sovereign equality of al1its Members" (Charter, Article 2(I)),
and the General Pissembly is its only organ established by the
,Charter which is made up of representatives of al1 Member Statcs.

(a) The General Assembly is the first of the sis "principal
organs" mentioned in Article 7 of the Charter.
(b)' The General Assembly dominates the whole Organization,
decisively iiitervening in the formation of theother principal organs,
with a considerable control, varying in dcgree, over their activitics
and exercising an lever-widening influence in relation to the airris
of the United Nations.
(c) The Assembly cannot surrendcr its prerogatives, nor crin it
irrevocably delegate them. This principle was rrcognized whcn thc
"'Little Assembly" or "Interim Committee" was set up. The
Assembly, moreover, possesses certain implied powers (Charter,
Article II (4)).
(d) In order to lighten its burden, the Assembly can merely
'"establish such su'bsidiary organs as it deems necessary for the
performance of its functions" (Charter, Article 22). The meaning
of the word "subsidiary" is "anything which is of assistance to

something which i:; of a principal order" ("subsidiaire : qui vient
en aide à quelque chose de principalH-Littré, Dictionnaire).
The functions assigned to the subsidiary organ always remain
functions of the Assembly.
(e) In respect of the staff of the Secretariat, the Assembly
"establishes" the Regulations under which this staff is appointed
by the Secretary-General (Charter, Article 101). Consequently, italso regulates the conditions in which these officials must leave.
It supervises the a.pplication of these Regulations.

II. The "Administrative Tribunal" was given its name in the
days of the League of Nations, possibly as a result of the influence
of Albert Thomas, who was himself inspired by the terminology
of French public law.
(a) "~d&nistrai:ive Tribuna1s"-whatever may be the binding
force of their decisions-are not, and never have been, regarded
in France as judi.cia1 organs : they are administrative organs
(Laferrière, Contentieuxadministratif, Vol. 1, p. 619 ;Louis Renault,
Précisde droit administratif, pp. 38-40).

(b) The United Nations Administrative Tribunal was established
by the General Assembly in accordance with the principles referred
to above (1, c, d and e), and belongs to the system of the Organi-
zation.
(c) The termino'logy of the Statute does not justify the view
that the United Nations Administrative Tribunal is a true and
entirely independent judicial organ. The appellation "tribunal"
has been applied to other organs of the United Nations which are
not judicial bodies-"the Tribunal for Libya", "the Tribunal for
Eritrea". When it is said that the "judgments" of the Tribunal
shall be "final and without appeal" (Statute, Article IO (z)), the
reference is merely to the procedure to be followed :it did not
prevent the Triburial, in special circumstances, from reviewing its
own previous decision, andit is not sufficient to prevent the General

Assembly from refiusing to give an effect to an award of compen-
sation made by the Administrative Tribunal, an organ which is
subsidiary in relation to it. The Statute provides that the Adminis-
trative Tribunal may "order the rescinding of the decision or the
specific performance of the obligation", but at the same time it
permits the Secretary-General to refuse to give effect to the
decision, compensation being in that event awarded to the official.
The decisions of Conseils de firéfecture,which are likewise adminis-
trative tribunals, a.re referred to as "judgments" in recent French
legislation. The pirovisions (Statute, Articles 9 (3) and 12), in
accordance with urhich the compensation fixed by the Tribunal
is to be paid by the United Nations or by a specialized agency,
merely indicate by whom the compensation is to be paid, but
they do not imply an unconditional obligation to make immediate
and complete payinent. Any other interpretation of these words
would lead to "something unreasonable or absurd".

(d) Moreover, tlhere is no requirement that members of the
Administrative Tribunal should have any specialized training or,
in particular, any legal qualification ; they are not called "judges",
they donot enjoy salaries which cannot be reduced, for the General
Assembly can in fact fix and alter these salaries at its pleasure ;
50 U.N. ADM. TRIB. (DISS. OP.BY JUDGE LEVI CARNEIRO)
94
they are elected by the General Assembly for the short term of
three years. A member of the Tribunal can be dismissed by the
Assembly if "the other members are of the unanimous opinion
that he is unsuited for further service" (Statute, Article 3 (5)).
Decisions are taken by three members of the Tribunal-less than
half of its total membership-and the majority may consist of

only two votes.
(e) When it established the Administrative Tribunal in 1949,
the General Assembly of the United Nations could not have for-
gotten what had happened in 1946 with regard to certain decisions
of the Administrative Tribunal of the League of Nations. Nothing
was, however, done to prevent a further refusa1 by the General
Assembly to give effect to a decision of the Tribunal : the provisions

of the former Statute were retained ;indeed, the word "member"
was adopted to designate those who in the earlier Statute had been
referred to as "judges".
(i)The General Assembly could only establish a subsidiary organ
which was not a true judicial tribunal, for the General Assembly
itself has no judicial functions for the reasons mentioned below
(II h).

(g) Even for the purpose of governing the external relations
of the Organization-that is, with regard to questions arising with
a State or with third parties-in the Conventions of February 13th,
1946, June t th, 1946, July ~st, 1946, and June 26th, 1947, the
United Nations merely provided for arbitral bodies which were
not to be organs of the United Nations and whose decisions were
to be subject to an Advisory Opinion of the International Court

of Justice, or whose third arbitrator was to be appointed by the
President of the International Court of Justice.
(h) For the purpose of governing the interna1 relations of the
Organization-such as disputes between officials of the Secretariat
and the Secretary-General-if the Assembly had established a
judicial organ, that organ would inevitably be directly subordinated
to the International Court of Justice, which is the "principal judicial

organ of the United Nations" (Charter, Article 92). The decisions
of the Administrative Tribunal of the International Labour Organi-
sation are, by virtue of an express provision of its Statute, subject
in certain cases to an Advisory Opinion of the International Court
of Justice which is binding.
(i) The General Assembly is not a party to disputes decided by
the Administrative Tribunal ; it is only the Secretary-General who
is the defendant. He is not referred to in terms-at least in the
cases which 1have seen-as the representative of the United Nations
(see III, e).

(j) The decisions of an "administrative tribunal" thus consti-
tuted and functioning in this way (II, d) cannot have the weight
5 1of res judicata (see Georges Scelle, Manuel de droit international
public, 1948, p. 665).
(k) The "United Nations Administrative Tribunal" is not
independent ; nor is it a judicial organ ; it merely exercises "quasi

judicial" functions. The General Assembly likewise exercises
functions of this sort (Kelsen, The Law of the United Nations,
P. 194).

III. The relationship between the Administrative Tribunal and
the General Assembly, of which it is a "subsidiary organ", is
clearly indicated by the powers of the General Assembly, and
the conditions in which that body functions, which have been
referred to above. The General Assembly may, as it has already
done, modify the jurisdiction of the Tribunal, or it may abolish
it. A number of rules which have already been adopted have
limited the action of the Tribunai and the scope of its decisions.
(a) Changes of rules governing judicial organization and judicial
procedure-even when truly and completely judicial-are appli-
cable to earlier cases.

(b) The officials of the United Nations are bound by a "public
law contract". In such a case, "a convention, whatever its provi-
sions may be, cannot have the legal effect of limiting the com-
petence of the Administration l" (Jèze, Principes générauxde
droit administratif, 1926 ed., Vol. III, p. 430).
(c) The Assembly is technically able-and under a duty-to
control the action of the Administrative Tribunal, an organ which
it has established to assist it in the performance of its functions.
Although without judicial competence stricto sensu, it can, in

respect of legal questions raised by decisions of the Administrative
Tribunal, cal1 upon the collaboration of its Sixth Committee
(Legal Committee), of the International Law Commission and-
as it has done in the present case-of the International Court
of Justice.
(d) The decisions of the Administrative Tribunal are decisions
of first instance : as a rule, the dispute must first be submitted
to the Joint Appeals Body ; this is, however, merely an advisory
body and its opinion may be dispensed with, it then being possible
to submit the application directly to the Administrative Tribunal
(Statute of the Administrative Tribunal, Art. 7).

(e) Decisions of the Administrative Tribunal, if not subject to
control by the General Assembly, would have greater binding
force than the judgments of the International Court of Justice
itself: the General Assembly would have to give effect to them
without question. The Tribunal could at its pleasure define the
limits of the disciplinary powers of the Secretary-General, could

lTranslation by the Registry.

52interpret, apply or refuse to apply rules adopted by the General
Assembly. The decisions of this "subsidiary organ" would be
binding upon two "principal organsJ'-the General Assembly
and the Secretary-General-even on matters within their own
compet ence.

IV. In the present in accordance with the terms of the

request for advisory opinion, what is in fact involved is the
General Assembly's refusal to give effect to an award of com-
pensation made by the Administrative Tribunal in favour of a
dismissed official. The exercise of the Assembly's budgetary power
is thus involved.
(a) It is for the General Assembly alone to approve the budget
of the Organization (Charter, Art. 17 (1))"Budgetary questions"
are "important" and must be decided "by a two-thirds -majority
of the members present and voting" (Charter, Art. 18 (2)).

(b) Every increase in the expenditure of the Organization
necessarily involves an increase of the contributions by Member
States and must consequently affect the national budget of each
of these States.
(c) 1cannot conceive that the General Assembly can be obliged
automatically to give effect to.decisions-and to lay upon Member
States the ensuing financial burden-which may have been taken
by only two members of one of its subsidiary organs, the Admin-
istrative Tribunal.

(a) The General Assembly "must" respect a legal obligation of
the United Nations which has duly arisen or been validly recognized ;
but a decision of the Administrative Tribunal does not give rise to
or amount to final recognition of an obligation of the United
Nations.
(e) Payment of compensation awarded by the Administrative
Tribunal may be made-as has been done in almost al1 cases-by
the Secretary-General when there are funds provided by the
budget which he may use for this purpose ;this he can do without
any examination of the matter by the General Assembly, where
the General Assembly itself has expressly or impliedly authorized
such a course. In other cases, the General Assembly may refuse

payment entirely or may allow 'only a part of the award, if it
considers the decision of the Administrative Tribunal to have been
ill-founded.

V. The rights, and indeed the interests, of officiais must be
guaranteed and respected. But in truth these rights and interests
will not be any less guaranteed and respected by the deliberations
of the direct representatives of the sixty Member States than by
the Administrative Tribunal as at present organized. This is
particularly true since: (1)the very existence of the Tribunaland the scope of its decisions are dependent upon decisions of the
General Assembly, and (2) the General Assembly must always
respect the presumption in favour of the legality and the validity
of decisions of the Administrative Tribunal, thus exercising in
good faith, discretion, and imbued with the spirit of justice, its
prerogative of refusing to give effect, either in whole or in part,
to any given decision.

(Signed) LEVI CARNEIRO.

Bilingual Content

OPINION DISSIDENTE DE M. LEVI CARNEIRO

Ayant à mon regret répondu autrement que la Cour aux questions
poskes, j'ai le devoir d'exposer, très sommairement, les fondements

de mon opinion.
Pour résoudre ces qiiestions, le système de l'organisation des
Nations Unies dans son ensemble l'emporte, à mon avis, sur la
signification littérale de quelques mots tirés des statuts et des
règlements. Même pour l'interprétation littérale, cette Cour a
déjà confirmé lc principe énoncé par le Cour permanente :

ccles mots doivent être interprétésselon le sens qu'ils auraient
normalement dans leur contexte, à moins que l'interprétation
ainsi donnée ne conduise à des résultats déraisonnables ou ab-
surdes:) (Compétence de l'Assemblée générale pou l'radmission
d'un Etat, C. 1. J. Recueil 1950, p. 8).

1. L'Organisation des Nations Unies est fondée ((sur le principe
de l'égalité souveraine de tous ses Membres ))(Charte,article 2 (1))
et l'Assemblée généraleest son seul organe institué par la Charte,

dans lequel sont représentés tous les États Membres.
a) L'Assemblée générale estle premier des six (organes princi-
paux ))mentionnés dans l'article 7 de la Charte.
b) L'Assemblée générale domine toute l'organisation, intervient
de façon décisive dans la formation des autres organes principaux,
contrôle plus ou moins largement leurs activités, exerce une

influence chaque fois plus étendue, en rapport avec tous les
objectifs des Nations Unies.
c) L'Assemblée ne peut pas renoncer à ses attributions, ni les
déléguerdéfinitivement. Ce principe a étéreconnu à l'occasion de
l'institution de la ((petite assemblée »,ou ((commission intérimaire D.
L'Assemblée a aussi des pouvoirs implicites (Charte,article II (4)).

d) Pour alléger sa tâche, l'Assemblée peut seulement <(créer les
organes subsidiaires qu'elle juge nécessaires à l'exercice de ses
fonctions 1) (Charte, article 22). Le sens du terme ccsubsidiaire ))
est : ccqui vient en aide à quelque chose de principal ))(Littré,
Dictionnaire). Les fonctions attribuées à l'organe subsidiaire con-

tinuent toujours d'être des fonctions de l'Assemblée.

e) L'Assemblée, eu égard au personnel du Secrétariat, « fixe))les
règles suivant lesquelles ce personnel est nommé par le Secrétaire
général (Charte, article 101). Par conséquent, elle règle aussi le

49 DISSENTING OPINION RY JI7L)GE LEVI CARNEIRO

[Translation]
Having, to my iregret, given an answer different froni that of
the Court to the cluestions submitted to it, 1 must set out very
briefly the groundc; for my opinion.

In order to rescilve these questions, it seems to me that the
system of the United Nations regarded as a whole is of more
importance than tlne literal meaning of a fcw words taken from
the Statute and the Kegulations. Indced, even with regard to
literal interpretation, this Court has already affirmed a principlc
laid down by the Permanent Court of International Justice :

".... words musi' be iiiterpreted in the sense whicli tliey would
normally 1iaL.elin their context, unless such interpretation would
General Assembly for the Admission ofsurd" aCState to the United
Nations, I.C.J. Reports 1950, p. 8).

1. The Lnited Nations Organization is based on "the principle
.of the sovereign equality of al1its Members" (Charter, Article 2(I)),
and the General Pissembly is its only organ established by the
,Charter which is made up of representatives of al1 Member Statcs.

(a) The General Assembly is the first of the sis "principal
organs" mentioned in Article 7 of the Charter.
(b)' The General Assembly dominates the whole Organization,
decisively iiitervening in the formation of theother principal organs,
with a considerable control, varying in dcgree, over their activitics
and exercising an lever-widening influence in relation to the airris
of the United Nations.
(c) The Assembly cannot surrendcr its prerogatives, nor crin it
irrevocably delegate them. This principle was rrcognized whcn thc
"'Little Assembly" or "Interim Committee" was set up. The
Assembly, moreover, possesses certain implied powers (Charter,
Article II (4)).
(d) In order to lighten its burden, the Assembly can merely
'"establish such su'bsidiary organs as it deems necessary for the
performance of its functions" (Charter, Article 22). The meaning
of the word "subsidiary" is "anything which is of assistance to

something which i:; of a principal order" ("subsidiaire : qui vient
en aide à quelque chose de principalH-Littré, Dictionnaire).
The functions assigned to the subsidiary organ always remain
functions of the Assembly.
(e) In respect of the staff of the Secretariat, the Assembly
"establishes" the Regulations under which this staff is appointed
by the Secretary-General (Charter, Article 101). Consequently, it départ de ces fonctionnaires. Elle surveille l'application de ces
règles.

II. Le ((tribunal administratif 1)a étéainsi dénomméau temps
de la Sociétédes Nations, peut-être sous l'influence d'Albert
Thomas, lui-même inspiré de la terminologie du droit public
français.
a) Les cctribunaux administratifs ))- quelle que soit la force

obligatoire de leurs décisions - ne sont pas considérés, n'ont
jamais étéconsidérés, enFrance,. comme des organes judiciaires :
ils sont des organes administratifs (Laferrière, Contentieux adminis-
tratif, vol. 1,p. 619 ; Louis Renault, Précisde droit administratif,
PP. 38-40).
b) Le tribunal administratif des Nations Unies a étécréépar
l'Assembléegénérale selon les principes posésci-dessus (1,c, d, e)

et fait partie du système de l'organisation.

c) Les expressions de son statut n'autorisent pas à considérer
le tribunal administratif des Nations Unies comme un vrai organe
judiciaire, tout à fait indépendant. La dénomination « tribunal 1)
a étédonnéeà d'autres organes des Nations Unies, qui ne sont pas

judiciaires - «Tribunal de Lybie »,« Tribunal d'Érythrée ». Quand
l'on dit que les ccjugements ))du tribunal sont ((définitifset sans
appel » (statut, article IO,^),il s'agit uniquement de procédure :
cela n'a pas empêché letribunal de reviser, en des circonstances
particulières, sa décisionantérieure, et ne suffit pas pour empêcher
1'Assembléegénéralede refuser d'exécuter une allocation d'indem-
nisation faite par le tribunal administratif, organe qui lui est

subsidiaire. Le statut dit que le tribunal administratif «ordonne
l'annulation de la décision, ou l'exécution de l'obligation », mais,
en mêmetemps, il permet au Secrétaire générad le refuser d'exécuter
la décision,une indemnité étant dans ce cas allouéeau fonctionnaire.
Les décisions des conseils de préfecture, qui sont aussi des tribu-
naux administratifs, sont dénommées ((jugements >,dans des lois
françaises très récentes. Les dispositions (statut, articles g (3) et

12) suivant lesquelles l'indemnitéfixéepar le tribunal administratif
sera payéepar les Nations Unies ou par une institution spécialisée,
indiquent seulement qui doit payer l'indemnité, sans signifier une
obligation inconditionnelle de paiement immédiat et intégral. Une
autre interprétation de ces mots conduirait «à des résultats dérai-
sonnables ou abszirdes N.

d) D'autre part, il n'est pas exigé des membres du tribunal
administratif qu'ils aient une culture spécialisée,notamment une
culture juridique ; ils ne sont pas dénommés ccjuges », n'ont pas
l'irréductibilité du traitement, que l'Assemblée généralepeut au
contraire fixer et altérer à son gré ; ils sont élus par l'Assemblée

50also regulates the conditions in which these officials must leave.
It supervises the a.pplication of these Regulations.

II. The "Administrative Tribunal" was given its name in the
days of the League of Nations, possibly as a result of the influence
of Albert Thomas, who was himself inspired by the terminology
of French public law.
(a) "~d&nistrai:ive Tribuna1s"-whatever may be the binding
force of their decisions-are not, and never have been, regarded
in France as judi.cia1 organs : they are administrative organs
(Laferrière, Contentieuxadministratif, Vol. 1, p. 619 ;Louis Renault,
Précisde droit administratif, pp. 38-40).

(b) The United Nations Administrative Tribunal was established
by the General Assembly in accordance with the principles referred
to above (1, c, d and e), and belongs to the system of the Organi-
zation.
(c) The termino'logy of the Statute does not justify the view
that the United Nations Administrative Tribunal is a true and
entirely independent judicial organ. The appellation "tribunal"
has been applied to other organs of the United Nations which are
not judicial bodies-"the Tribunal for Libya", "the Tribunal for
Eritrea". When it is said that the "judgments" of the Tribunal
shall be "final and without appeal" (Statute, Article IO (z)), the
reference is merely to the procedure to be followed :it did not
prevent the Triburial, in special circumstances, from reviewing its
own previous decision, andit is not sufficient to prevent the General

Assembly from refiusing to give an effect to an award of compen-
sation made by the Administrative Tribunal, an organ which is
subsidiary in relation to it. The Statute provides that the Adminis-
trative Tribunal may "order the rescinding of the decision or the
specific performance of the obligation", but at the same time it
permits the Secretary-General to refuse to give effect to the
decision, compensation being in that event awarded to the official.
The decisions of Conseils de firéfecture,which are likewise adminis-
trative tribunals, a.re referred to as "judgments" in recent French
legislation. The pirovisions (Statute, Articles 9 (3) and 12), in
accordance with urhich the compensation fixed by the Tribunal
is to be paid by the United Nations or by a specialized agency,
merely indicate by whom the compensation is to be paid, but
they do not imply an unconditional obligation to make immediate
and complete payinent. Any other interpretation of these words
would lead to "something unreasonable or absurd".

(d) Moreover, tlhere is no requirement that members of the
Administrative Tribunal should have any specialized training or,
in particular, any legal qualification ; they are not called "judges",
they donot enjoy salaries which cannot be reduced, for the General
Assembly can in fact fix and alter these salaries at its pleasure ;
5094 TRIB. ADX.1 DES N.U. (OP. DISS. DE M. LEVI CARNEIRO)

générale elle-même pour la courte période de trois ans. Un membre
du tribunal peut être relevé de ses fonctions par l'Assemblée
((si les autres membres estiment à l'unanimité qu'il n'est plus
qualifié pour les exercer ))(statut, article 3 (5)).Les décisionssont
prises par trois membres du' tribunal - moins de la moitié de
la totalité - et la majorité peut se former par deux voix seulement.

e) En créant le tribunal administratif, en 1949, l'Assemblée
généraledes Nations Unies ne pouvait oublier ce qui s'était passé
en 1946, touchant quelques décisions du tribunal administratif
de la Sociétédes Nations. Rien n'a été fait, cependant, pour
éviter un nouveau refus d'exécution par l'Assemblée générale

d'une décision du tribunal :on a conservé les mêmesdispositions
que dans le statut antérieur ;on a mêmeadopté le mot ((membre »
~OLI~ désigner ceux que le statut précédent dénommait (juges n.

/) L'Assemblée générale ne pourrait créer qu'un organe sub-
sidiaire qui ne serait pas un vrai tribunal judiciaire, parce que
l'Assemblée générale elle-même n'a pas de fonctions judiciaires
et pour les raisons exposées ci-dessous (II h).

g) Mêmepour régler des rapports externes de l'organisation
- c'est-à-dire des questions avec un Etat ou avec des tiers -,
dans les conventions du 13 février 1946, du II juin 1946, du
xer juillet 1946 et du 26 juin 1917, les Kations 'C'niesn'ont prévu
que des organes d'arbitrage, qui ne sont pas des organes des
Xations Unies, et dont les décisions restent soumises à l'avis
consultatif de la Cour internationale de Justice, ou dont le tiers
arbitre est nommé par le Président de la Cour internationale

cle Justice.
il)Pour régler'des rapports internes de l'organisation - tels
les différends entre fonctionnaires du Secrétariat et le Secrétaire
général -, si 1',4ssembléeavait crééun organe judiciaire, il serait

nécessairement et immédiatement subordonné à la Cour inter-
nationale de Justice, qui est «l'organe judiciaire principal des
Sations Lnies )) (Charte, article 92). Les décisions du tribunal
administratif de l'organisation internationale du Travail sont,
par disposition expresse de son statut, soumises, dans certains
cas, à l'avis consultatif, avec force obligatoire, de la Cour inter-
nationale de Justice.

i) L'Assemblée générale n'est pas partie au différend décidk
par le tribunal administratif ; c'est seulement le Secrétaire général
qui est défendeur. On ne lui a pas attribué expressément - au
moins dans les cas que je connais - la qualité de représentant
des Nations Unies (v. III, e).

j) Les décisions d'un ((tribunal administratif ))constitué de la
sorte et fonctionnant de la sorte (II, d) ne peuvent avoir l'autorité U.N. ADM. TRIB. (DISS. OP.BY JUDGE LEVI CARNEIRO)
94
they are elected by the General Assembly for the short term of
three years. A member of the Tribunal can be dismissed by the
Assembly if "the other members are of the unanimous opinion
that he is unsuited for further service" (Statute, Article 3 (5)).
Decisions are taken by three members of the Tribunal-less than
half of its total membership-and the majority may consist of

only two votes.
(e) When it established the Administrative Tribunal in 1949,
the General Assembly of the United Nations could not have for-
gotten what had happened in 1946 with regard to certain decisions
of the Administrative Tribunal of the League of Nations. Nothing
was, however, done to prevent a further refusa1 by the General
Assembly to give effect to a decision of the Tribunal : the provisions

of the former Statute were retained ;indeed, the word "member"
was adopted to designate those who in the earlier Statute had been
referred to as "judges".
(i)The General Assembly could only establish a subsidiary organ
which was not a true judicial tribunal, for the General Assembly
itself has no judicial functions for the reasons mentioned below
(II h).

(g) Even for the purpose of governing the external relations
of the Organization-that is, with regard to questions arising with
a State or with third parties-in the Conventions of February 13th,
1946, June t th, 1946, July ~st, 1946, and June 26th, 1947, the
United Nations merely provided for arbitral bodies which were
not to be organs of the United Nations and whose decisions were
to be subject to an Advisory Opinion of the International Court

of Justice, or whose third arbitrator was to be appointed by the
President of the International Court of Justice.
(h) For the purpose of governing the interna1 relations of the
Organization-such as disputes between officials of the Secretariat
and the Secretary-General-if the Assembly had established a
judicial organ, that organ would inevitably be directly subordinated
to the International Court of Justice, which is the "principal judicial

organ of the United Nations" (Charter, Article 92). The decisions
of the Administrative Tribunal of the International Labour Organi-
sation are, by virtue of an express provision of its Statute, subject
in certain cases to an Advisory Opinion of the International Court
of Justice which is binding.
(i) The General Assembly is not a party to disputes decided by
the Administrative Tribunal ; it is only the Secretary-General who
is the defendant. He is not referred to in terms-at least in the
cases which 1have seen-as the representative of the United Nations
(see III, e).

(j) The decisions of an "administrative tribunal" thus consti-
tuted and functioning in this way (II, d) cannot have the weight
5 1de la chose jugée (v. Georges Scelle, Manuel de droit international
public, 1948, p. 665).
k) Le «tribunal administratif des Nations Unies » n'est pas
indépendant ; ce n'est pas un organe judiciaire ;il exerce seulement

des fonctions (quasi-judiciaires ».L'Assembléegénérale exerceaussi
des fonctions de cette esp.èce(Kelsen, The Law of the United
Nations, p. 194).

III. Les rapports du tribunal administratif avec l'Assemblée
générale,dont il est un (organe subsidiaire n,sont bien caractérisés
par les conditions et les pouvoirs de l'Assembléegénérale,indiqués
ci-dessus. L'Assembléegénéralepeut modifier, comme elle l'a déjà
fait, la juridiction de ce tribunal et le supprimer. Plusieurs règles
déjà adoptéesont restreint l'action du tribunal et limitéla portée
de ses décisions.

a) Les modifications des règles d'organisation judiciaire et de

procédure judiciaire - même judiciaire - sont appliquées aux
cas antérieurs.
b) Les fonctionnaires des Nations Unies sont liéspar un contrat
de droit public ».Dans ce cas, ((la convention, quelque formelle
qu'elle puisse être,ne peut avoir pour effet juridique de limiter la
compétence de l'administration 1) (Jèze, Principes générauxde
droit administratif, éd. 1926, vol. III, p. 430).

c) L'Assemblée est capable, au point de vue technique, de
contrôler - et elle doit le faire - l'action du tribunal adminis-
tratif, organe qu'elle a créépour l'aider dans l'exercice de ses
fonctions. Sans avoir de compétence judiciaire stricte, elle peut
bénéficierp , our les questions juridiques soulevéespar les décisions
du tribunal administratif, de la collaboration de sa 6me Commission
(Commission juridique), de la Commission de droit international
et - comme elle vient de le faire dans le cas actuel - de la Cour
internationale de Justice.
d) Les décisions du tribunal administratif sont rendues en

première instance : en règle,le différenddoit êtresoumis préalable-
ment à l'organisme paritaire de recours ; toutefois, cet organe est
simplement consultatif, et on peut se dispenser de demander son
avis, la requête pouvant être soumise directement au tribunal
administratif (statut du tribunal, art. 7).
e) Les décisionsdu tribunal administratif, si elles n'étaient pas
soumises au contrôle de 1'AssembIéegénérale,auraient plus de
force obligatoire que les arrêtsmêmesde la Cour internationale de
Justice : l'Assembléegénéralen'aurait qu'à les exécuter passive-
ment. Le tribunal fi-rait à son gréla limite du pouvoir discipli-

naire du Secrétaire général,interpréterait, appliquerait ou refuse-of res judicata (see Georges Scelle, Manuel de droit international
public, 1948, p. 665).
(k) The "United Nations Administrative Tribunal" is not
independent ; nor is it a judicial organ ; it merely exercises "quasi

judicial" functions. The General Assembly likewise exercises
functions of this sort (Kelsen, The Law of the United Nations,
P. 194).

III. The relationship between the Administrative Tribunal and
the General Assembly, of which it is a "subsidiary organ", is
clearly indicated by the powers of the General Assembly, and
the conditions in which that body functions, which have been
referred to above. The General Assembly may, as it has already
done, modify the jurisdiction of the Tribunal, or it may abolish
it. A number of rules which have already been adopted have
limited the action of the Tribunai and the scope of its decisions.
(a) Changes of rules governing judicial organization and judicial
procedure-even when truly and completely judicial-are appli-
cable to earlier cases.

(b) The officials of the United Nations are bound by a "public
law contract". In such a case, "a convention, whatever its provi-
sions may be, cannot have the legal effect of limiting the com-
petence of the Administration l" (Jèze, Principes générauxde
droit administratif, 1926 ed., Vol. III, p. 430).
(c) The Assembly is technically able-and under a duty-to
control the action of the Administrative Tribunal, an organ which
it has established to assist it in the performance of its functions.
Although without judicial competence stricto sensu, it can, in

respect of legal questions raised by decisions of the Administrative
Tribunal, cal1 upon the collaboration of its Sixth Committee
(Legal Committee), of the International Law Commission and-
as it has done in the present case-of the International Court
of Justice.
(d) The decisions of the Administrative Tribunal are decisions
of first instance : as a rule, the dispute must first be submitted
to the Joint Appeals Body ; this is, however, merely an advisory
body and its opinion may be dispensed with, it then being possible
to submit the application directly to the Administrative Tribunal
(Statute of the Administrative Tribunal, Art. 7).

(e) Decisions of the Administrative Tribunal, if not subject to
control by the General Assembly, would have greater binding
force than the judgments of the International Court of Justice
itself: the General Assembly would have to give effect to them
without question. The Tribunal could at its pleasure define the
limits of the disciplinary powers of the Secretary-General, could

lTranslation by the Registry.

52rait d'appliquer les règles adoptées par l'Assemblée générale. Les

décisions de cet ((organe subsidiaire 1)seraient obligatoires pour
deux ((organes principaux )- l'Assemblée générale et le Secrétaire
général - mêmedans des matières de leur compétence.

IV. Dans le cas actuel, ,aux termes de la demande, il s'agit
spécialement du refus, par l'Assemblée généraled , 'exécuter une
allocation d'indemnité faite par le tribunal administratif à un

fonctionnaire démissionné.Il s'agit ici de l'exercice du pouvoir
budgétaire de l'Assemblée.

a) C'est seulement l'Assemblée générale qui approuve le budget
de l'organisation (Charte, art. 17 (1)).Les (questions budgétaires »
sont importantes 1et décidées (à la majorité des deux tiers des

membres présents et votant ))(Charte, art. 18 (2)).
b) Chaque majoration de dépensesde l'organisation doit entraî-
ner la majoration des contributions des États Membres et a par
suite une répercussion dans le budget national de chacun de ces
États.

c) Je ne peux concevoir que l'Assemblée générale soitobligée
d'exécuter automatiquement et d'imposer aux États Membres la
charge des décisionsqui pourront avoir étéprises seulement par
deux membres d'un de ses organes subsidiaires, le tribunal
administratif.

d) L'Assemblée générale doit )) respecter une obligation juri-
dique des Nations Unies, légitimement constitqée ou reconnue ;
mais la décision .du tribunal administratif ne constitue, ni ne
reconnaît définitivement une obligation des Nations Unies.

e) Le paiement d'une indemnité allouée par le tribunal admi-

nistratif peut être fait - comme il est arrivé dans la presque
totalité des cas - par le Secrétaire général,quand il y a au budget
des fonds dont il peut disposer à cet effet ; et cela, sans examen
de l'Assemblée,si l'Assembléemêmel'autorise .explicitement ou
implicitement. Dans les autres cas, l'Assemblée généralepeut
refuser, en tout ou en partie, le paiement, si elle reconnaît mal
fondée la décision du tribunal administratif.

V. Les droits et même lesintérêtsdes fonctionnaires doivent
êtregarantis et respectés. Certainement, ils ne seront pas moins
garantis et respectéspar les délibérationsdes représentants directs
des soixante États Membres que par le tribunal administratif, tel
qu'il est maintenant organisé. D'autant plus que: IO l'existence
mêmedu tribunal et l'ampleur de ses décisions dépendent desinterpret, apply or refuse to apply rules adopted by the General
Assembly. The decisions of this "subsidiary organ" would be
binding upon two "principal organsJ'-the General Assembly
and the Secretary-General-even on matters within their own
compet ence.

IV. In the present in accordance with the terms of the

request for advisory opinion, what is in fact involved is the
General Assembly's refusal to give effect to an award of com-
pensation made by the Administrative Tribunal in favour of a
dismissed official. The exercise of the Assembly's budgetary power
is thus involved.
(a) It is for the General Assembly alone to approve the budget
of the Organization (Charter, Art. 17 (1))"Budgetary questions"
are "important" and must be decided "by a two-thirds -majority
of the members present and voting" (Charter, Art. 18 (2)).

(b) Every increase in the expenditure of the Organization
necessarily involves an increase of the contributions by Member
States and must consequently affect the national budget of each
of these States.
(c) 1cannot conceive that the General Assembly can be obliged
automatically to give effect to.decisions-and to lay upon Member
States the ensuing financial burden-which may have been taken
by only two members of one of its subsidiary organs, the Admin-
istrative Tribunal.

(a) The General Assembly "must" respect a legal obligation of
the United Nations which has duly arisen or been validly recognized ;
but a decision of the Administrative Tribunal does not give rise to
or amount to final recognition of an obligation of the United
Nations.
(e) Payment of compensation awarded by the Administrative
Tribunal may be made-as has been done in almost al1 cases-by
the Secretary-General when there are funds provided by the
budget which he may use for this purpose ;this he can do without
any examination of the matter by the General Assembly, where
the General Assembly itself has expressly or impliedly authorized
such a course. In other cases, the General Assembly may refuse

payment entirely or may allow 'only a part of the award, if it
considers the decision of the Administrative Tribunal to have been
ill-founded.

V. The rights, and indeed the interests, of officiais must be
guaranteed and respected. But in truth these rights and interests
will not be any less guaranteed and respected by the deliberations
of the direct representatives of the sixty Member States than by
the Administrative Tribunal as at present organized. This is
particularly true since: (1)the very existence of the Tribunal TRIB. ADM. DES N. U. @P. DISS.DE M. LEVI CARNEIRO)
97
décisions de l'Assemblée générale, et 2" l'Assemblée générale
doit toujours respecter la présomption de légitimité et de bien-

fondé des décisions du tribunal administratif, exerçant ainsi, en
bonne foi, avec discrétion et esprit de justice, sa prérogative de
ne pas exécuter, totalement ou partiellement, une quelconque
de ces décisions.

(Signé) LEVICARNEIRO.and the scope of its decisions are dependent upon decisions of the
General Assembly, and (2) the General Assembly must always
respect the presumption in favour of the legality and the validity
of decisions of the Administrative Tribunal, thus exercising in
good faith, discretion, and imbued with the spirit of justice, its
prerogative of refusing to give effect, either in whole or in part,
to any given decision.

(Signed) LEVI CARNEIRO.

Document file FR
Document Long Title

Dissenting Opinion by Judge Levi Carneiro (translation)

Links