UNDT/2010/098, Gabaldon
According to the available record, the applicant never received a letter of appointment and no such letter was ever signed by an authorized official. He did not, therefore, become a staff member of the United Nations within the meaning of article 3, paragraph 1, of the UNDT Statute. It follows that the applicant has no access to the system of administration of justice in its present state. It is noted that the General Assembly has requested the Secretary-General to investigate the option of granting access to non-staff personnel. Outcome: the application was rejected.
The applicant received an offer of appointment, which he accepted in writing. The applicant fell ill and the offer of appointment was withdrawn, before a letter of appointment was issued.
UNAT held in judgment No. 2010-UNAT-029, El-Khatib, that the contract whereby the Organization recruits a staff member, which would be governed by the staff rules, is not a common-law contract. According to that judgment, the contract can only be concluded validly on the date a duly authorized official of the Organization signs the staff member’s letter of appointment.Following the legal pronouncements of its court of appeal, UNDT noted that “in view of the special relationship between the United Nations and its civil servants, the legal principles that may be applicable to a contract between private parties are not relevant to assess if a valid contract of employment has been concluded between the Organization and a civil servant. It further results from that special relationship that a person cannot obtain the status of a staff member of the United Nations before his letter of appointment is signed by a duly authorized official of the Organization.”