Alex Haines and Courtney Step-Marsden instructed in mini-class action against the Islamic Corporation

Alex Haines and Courtney Step-Marsden have been instructed in a mini-class action against the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector before the Islamic Development Bank Group Administrative Tribunal.

The newly established Islamic Development Bank Group Administrative Tribunal (IsDBGAT or Tribunal) is based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and hears cases brought by international civil servants who work at the Islamic Development Bank Group (IsDBG). The IsDBG is comprised of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), Islamic Research & Training Institute (IRTI), Islamic Corporation for Development of the Private Sector (ICD), Islamic Corporation for Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), and International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC).

The IsDBG is a regional Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) whose mission includes the promotion of social and economic development in Member States and Muslim communities worldwide. The present membership of the IsDBG consists of 57 countries, with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia funding almost a quarter of its total capital.  

The IsDBGAT is a judicial body that functions independently of the IsDBG; its independence is guaranteed in its Statute and Rules of Procedure adopted in June 2020 and February 2022 respectively. The Tribunal is composed of five members, all of whom are nationals of IsDBG member countries.

Almost all International Organisations are subject to the jurisdiction of an international administrative tribunal (IAT) regarding their institutional matters. IATs generally exist in the realm of the public international law system. Most international organisations have provided for some sort of internal justice mechanism to address institutional disputes resulting in dozens of IATs, including the three most established: the World Bank Administrative Tribunal, United Nations’ two-tier system: UN Dispute Tribunal and UN Appeals Tribunal; and International Labour Organisation Administrative Tribunal (ILOAT) in Geneva. In the EU, the General Court is the equivalent IAT for disputes arising out of administrative decisions taken by European Institutions. On the African continent, the African Development Bank Administrative Tribunal in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, and the African Union’s Administrative Tribunal in Addis Ababa are the most prominent IATs.

Outer Temple’s International Organisations Law barristers have unrivalled experience in the laws, systems, and frameworks of international organisations, having been instructed in cases involving more than 35 international institutions worldwide. Such organisations enjoy a number of privileges and immunities and, as a result, have created internal justice systems that are not bound by domestic jurisdictions.

Most international organisations are created by multilateral treaties concluded between sovereign states and they are, therefore, products of public international law. All cases relating to international organisations require expert lawyers with an understanding of the complex workings of each institution, whether they deal with corruption, regulation, employment rights, whistleblowing, or policy-making in the context of advocacy, litigation, investigations, and advisory work.

International Organisations law

Members of the OTC International Organisations Law Team have been instructed before the following international tribunals and bodies:

• World Bank Administrative Tribunal (Washington DC)
• United Nations Appeals Tribunal (New York)
• United Nations Dispute Tribunal (New York)
• European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Administrative Tribunal (London)
• International Labour Organisation Administrative Tribunal (Geneva)
• Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (London)
• Inter-American Development Bank Administrative Tribunal (Washington DC)
• Black Sea Trade and Development Bank Administrative Tribunal (Thessaloniki)
• Asian Development Bank Administrative Tribunal (Manila)
• General Court of the European Union (Luxembourg)
• African Union Administrative Tribunal (Addis Ababa)
• Islamic Development Bank Administrative Tribunal (Jeddah)
• Pan American Health Organisation Board of Appeal (Washington DC)
• European Investment Bank Appeals Panel (Luxembourg)
• International Maritime Organisation Staff Appeals Board (London)

Find Out More

You can find out more about our International Organisations practice on our expertise page or contact Sam Carter on +44 (0)203 989 6669 or Colin Bunyan on +44 (0)20 7427 4886 for a confidential discussion.

Alex Haines is a specialist in international law, with particular expertise in the extensive field of international organisations law. He was appointed as a Sanctions Officer at the Caribbean Development Bank in 2020 and is on the AG’s London B Panel of Counsel to the Crown since 2019. He is admitted to both the New York and Irish Bars in addition to the Bar of England and Wales.

His practice areas include: (i) business crime and corruption including global investigations; (ii) sanctions and export control; (iii) international regulatory and disciplinary proceedings; (iv) institutional law of international organisations including their immunities and international administrative law; (v) international arbitration; and (vi) financial services inquiries (instructed on the Dame Linda Dobbs Review).

To find out more, contact Sam Carter on +44 (0)203 989 6669 or Colin Bunyan on +44 (0)20 7427 4886 for a confidential discussion.

Courtney Step-Marsden joined Chambers in 2020 following the successful completion of her pupillage.

She accepts instructions across all of Chambers’ areas. Her core practice includes Employment Law, Pensions Law, Court of Protection, Education, international and commercial work. Courtney has also seen the value of working in house, having recently been seconded to the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Courtney read Law at Somerville College, Oxford, where she won the prize for the highest performance in Law Moderations within her college. During her time at Somerville, she was an active member of her Junior Common Room, acting as Disabilities Officer. This involved advocating for and promoting the needs of disabled students in college and in the larger Oxford community. Courtney was also an Undergraduate Representative for the Bodleian Libraries’ Disability Sub-Committee.

To find out more, contact Sam Carter on +44 (0)203 989 6669 or Colin Bunyan on +44 (0)20 7427 4886 for a confidential discussion.

News 12 Jul, 2022