Administrative Tribunal

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The information shared in this webpage is intended to provide general information to help readers answering some basic questions about how the Administrative Tribunal of the IDB Group functions.

This information is not equivalent to legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. Any specific questions concerning legal rights should be consulted with an attorney.

In case of discrepancies, the Statute and the Rules of Procedure of the Administrative Tribunal of the IDB Group, including future amendments, should prevail over this webpage.

What do we do?

The Administrative Tribunal of the IDB Group hears complaints in which a current or former staff member of the IDB Group alleges non-observance of his or her contract of employment or terms and conditions of appointment, provided the complainant has exhausted all other remedies available within the IDB Group, as applicable, within the appropriate time periods, as established by the Statute and Rules of Procedure of the Administrative Tribunal.

What type of cases does the Tribunal hear?

The cases are related mostly to the following topics: performance evaluation and career development; benefits, compensation and pension issues; equity of treatment and respect in the workplace; and misconduct, conflict of interest and alleged misuse of Bank resources.

The Tribunal may order the annulment of management decisions, compensation, restoration of salary, benefits and other entitlements, as applicable.

Who can file a complaint?

A complaint can be filed by any IDB Group employee, including consultants and retirees, and also by any person who is entitled to present a claim upon a right of a current, former, or retired staff member or consultant.

process

JURISDICTION OF THE TRIBUNAL

The Tribunal has jurisdiction when all internal remedies established in the formal conflict resolution mechanisms have been exhausted in a timely manner (Article II of the Statute of the Administrative Tribunal).

If the employee does not agree with the decision, he or she may file a complaint with the Administrative Tribunal no later than 120 days after the following:

  • The employee receives a Certificate of Conclusion of the Mediation.
  • The employee receives the Final Decision of the Administration Subcommittee (Pension).
  • The employee receives the Final Decision of the Vice President for Finance and Administration (VPF).

The documents mentioned above need to be attached to the Complaint.

FILING OF THE COMPLAINT

The Complaint is filed with the Executive Secretariat of the Tribunal at the Bank’s Headquarters. If the Complainant lives in a place other than Washington, D.C., the Complaint can be filed at the nearest Bank Office.

To learn more about how to file a complaint with the Tribunal, what are the requirements for a petition to be admitted and what are the next steps once the Tribunal receives your claim, we invite you to watch this 4 minutes video

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Procedure for filing the Complaint: Pleadings Phase

HEARING

The Tribunal may hold oral proceedings if it wishes to obtain additional evidence, including testimony. When additional evidence is needed, the Executive Secretary will request such information from the parties and they will have a new opportunity to comment on the evidence. Once the case is listed for decision, the Executive Secretary will notify the parties regarding the status of the case and no additional briefs or documents may be filed.

To learn more about what is the process followed to present and receive evidence, including witness hearings, and what are the steps that must be completed during the probative phase, we invite you to watch this 3 minutes video.

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Procedure for filing the Complaint: Probative Phase

THE DECISION

The Tribunal’s decisions are notified to each of the parties and they are final and not subject to appeal. The judgments are publicly disclosed in accordance with the provisions of the Bank’s Access to Information Policy.

To learn more about what does the deliberative process involve and how the Tribunal issues its judgments; its statistics on the resolution of cases and the average processing time for complaints, we invite you to watch this 4 minutes video.

Procedure for filing the Complaint: Deliberation and Judgment Phase

To access other Instructional Videos on the Administrative Tribunal and learn more about the Tribunal's role within the IDB Group, why it was established and how to access to it, click here.

The decisions appear in chronological order of issuance.

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Exhaustion of Internal Remedies

In accordance with Article II of the Tribunal’s Statute, prior to approaching to the Tribunal, the staff member must first exhaust all available internal remedies in a timely manner. This means that a Certificate of Conclusion of the Mediation, a Final Decision of the Vice-President for Finance and Administration (VPF) or a Final Decision of the Administration Subcommittee, as applicable, has to be attached.

Filing of the Complaint

The Complaint is filed with the Executive Secretariat of the Tribunal at the Bank’s Headquarters. If the Complainant lives in a place other than Washington, D.C., the Complaint can be filed at the nearest Bank Officer. The Complaint must be filed within 120 days of the date on which all internal remedies were exhausted.

Hearing

The Tribunal may hold oral proceedings if it wishes to obtain additional evidence, including testimony. When additional evidence is needed, the Executive Secretary will request such information from the parties and they will have a new opportunity to comment on the evidence. Once the case is listed for decision the Executive Secretary will notify the parties regarding the status of the case and no additional briefs or documents may be filed.

The Judgment

This is the last step of the process. The Tribunal’s judgment is final and is not subject to appeal. A copy of the judgment is delivered to each of the parties. The judgments are publicly disclosed in accordance with the provisions of the Bank's Access to Information Policy.

 
COMPOSITION

The Tribunal is composed of seven judges, who are independent from the IDB Group; they are appointed by the Board of Directors. The judges must be nationals of member countries. No two of them can be nationals of the same country. The judges are appointed for one non-renewable term of six years. In addition, an Executive Secretary of the Tribunal is appointed by the Board of Executive Directors and is responsible for assisting the Tribunal in discharging its functions. 

 

Judge Name Country Since
Graciela Dixon Caton (President) Panama 2017
William Berenson (Vice President) United States 2020
Lisa Shoman Belize 2017
Maria Vicien Milburn Argentina-Spain 2020
Teresa Maria Da Silva Bravo Portugal 2020
Westmin R.A James Trinidad and Tobago 2021
Kieran Bradley Ireland-United Kingdom 2021

See FORMER JUDGES

We invite you to watch this 2-minute video to learn more about the principles governing the Tribunal, and how it is composed.

Composition of the Administrative Tribunal

To access other Instructional Videos on the Administrative Tribunal and learn more about the Tribunal's role within the IDB Group, why it was established and how to access to it, click here.

About the Tribunal

The IDB and IDB Invest, like many international organizations, enjoy immunity from jurisdiction of the courts of their member countries. For this reason, the Administrative Tribunal was established to adjudicate disputes which arise out of the employment relationship of the IDB Group with their employees.

The Administrative Tribunal was established by the Board of Executive Directors of the IDB on April 29, 1981. The Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC) became subject to the Administrative Tribunal’s jurisdiction on November 19, 1991 by resolution of its Board of Executive Directors. As of November 2017, IDB Invest is the commercial name of the IIC.

We invite you to watch these videos to learn more about why the Tribunal was established, its scope of jurisdiction and role within the system for the resolution of work-related conflicts. You will also find useful information on how it is composed (Number of judges, process for selecting judges and role of the Executive Secretary of the Tribunal).

The Tribunal’s Operational Framework

Composition of the Administrative Tribunal

To access other Instructional Videos on the Administrative Tribunal and learn more about the Tribunal's role within the IDB Group, why it was established and how to access to it, click here.

See all the video gallery

Public Sessions, Events and News

Administrative Tribunal 2022: Agenda of the Sessions and Concluded Cases

Agenda - Fortieth Anniversary of the IDB Group Administrative Tribunal Event

Administrative Tribunal Sessions’ Agenda in 2021

First Summary Annual Report 2019. October 8th, 2020

Important Announcement: The Administrative Tribunal of the IDB Group voted an amendment to Art. 12(5) and (6) of its Rules of Procedures. Please click the following link to access to the full text of the Amended Rules of Procedure

Administrative Tribunal’s Town Hall, followed by the Tribunal Open House: November 5, 2019

The Administrative Tribunal is an independent judicial forum of last resort for IDB Group employees (staff and consultants) who allege the terms of their contract have not been observed.

As part of its new strategy, the IDB Group Administrative Tribunal has taken important steps in generating and promoting dissemination of knowledge of the services it offers.

For the first time, the Tribunal Secretariat organed a Town Hall where IDB Group staff and consultants were able to meet the judges and asked questions directly to them.