News & Events
News & Events
Two members of Outer Temple’s International Organisations Law have been instructed in the first set of cases before the Islamic Development Bank Administrative Tribunal (IsDBAT) which is based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Alex Haines and Victoria Brown have been instructed in a case before the IsDBAT in a case involving an allegation of unlawful termination of employment. The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) is a 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 IsDB consists of 57 countries, with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia funding almost a quarter of its total capital. The IsDBAT is a judicial body that functions independently of the IsDB; its…
News, International 14 Mar, 2022
Two members of our International Organisations Law Team have been instructed in a case before the World Bank Administrative Tribunal in Washington DC against the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development Alex Haines and Carin Hunt have been instructed in a case before the World Bank Group’s Administrative Tribunal (WBAT) involving an allegation of indirect sex discrimination. The WBAT was established by the Board of Governors of the Bank in 1980. It acts as a judicial forum of last resort for the resolution of cases submitted by World Bank Group staff members alleging non-observance of their contracts of employment or terms of appointment. The WBAT’s decisions are final and binding on the Bank. The WBAT is composed of seven judges, all of whom…
News, International 16 Feb, 2022
Alex Haines and Victoria Brown successfully represented the applicants in two recent WBAT cases. The World Bank Administrative Tribunal (“WBAT”) delivered last week its 8th November 2021 judgments in Cases Nos. 659 (GH v International Finance Corporation) and 660 (GI v International Finance Corporation). Alex Haines and Victoria Brown represented two Heads of Funds at the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”), one of the five World Bank Group Agencies together with the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (“IBRD”), International Development Association (“IDA”), International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”) and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (“MIGA”). The decision The WBAT ordered the IFC to pay compensation to the Applicants in the amount of six months’ salary net of taxes for the…
News, International 16 Dec, 2021
The United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT) has dismissed as “misplaced” the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Secretary-General’s July 2021 applications for interpretation of the landmark 2019 UNAT judgments on the IMO’s international justice system in which Alex Haines, assisted by Stephen Butler, was instructed by the successful claimants. On Friday 19th November 2021, the UNAT in New York – sitting as a full bench (i.e., all seven judges) – released its 29th October 2021 Judgment No. 2021-UNAT-1148 in the case of Fogarty, Sheffer, Spinardi, Dispert and Hoe (Respondents) v Secretary-General of the IMO (Applicant) (the “2021 Judgment”). Mr Haines represented Mr Sheffer, Ms Dispert and Ms Hoe. The 2021 Judgment on interpretation is relevant to the international justice systems of several…
News, International 25 Nov, 2021
Outer Temple Chambers and RPC have launched the Unspoken Giants podcast series which, for the first time ever, brings together senior officials from nine of the largest IFIs together to provide a unique insight into how investigations are conducted and what legal and compliance teams can do to navigate the complex and individualised systems at each institution. The World Bank In this episode, Alex Haines joins Jamieson Smith, Chief Suspension and Debarment Officer at the World Bank and Alice Kemp, barrister at RPC, to discuss how this giant of international finance is fighting against the cancer of corruption in its mission to work in every major area of development. The Inter-American Development Bank In this episode, Alex Haines joins Juan Ronderos,…
Business Crime, News 27 Oct, 2021
Teresa Rosen Peacocke and Alex Haines have authored an article in the September issue of Counsel Magazine on the advantages of dual qualification and a guide to qualifying for the New York Bar. Teresa explores the benefits of becoming an attorney in the United States, particularly in New York State, where most cross-border legal business is conducted. Teresa qualified as an attorney in New York 20 years after her call to the Bar of England and Wales after completing an LLM at New York University School of Law. Teresa explains that dual qualification enables the practitioner to understand and appreciate different approaches to resolving legal issues and, in turn, to become more flexible in providing legal services. It also enhances your…
Commercial, News 8 Sep, 2021
Alex Haines and Victoria Brown have been instructed in two cases currently going through the internal justice system of the Organization of American States in Washington DC. The First International Conference of American States held in Washington DC between October 1889 and April 1890 approved the establishment of the International Union of American Republics that was subsequently reconstituted as the Organization of American States (OAS) in 1948 when the Charter of the OAS was signed in Bogotá, Colombia. The OAS brings together all 35 member states of the Americas and constitutes the main political, juridical, and social governmental forum in the hemisphere. In addition, it has granted permanent observer status to 69 states, as well as to the EU. As with most international organisations, the…
News, International 1 Jul, 2021
Alex Haines and Sophie O’Sullivan have recently been instructed to act for a senior international civil servant at the African Union Commission (AUC) in relation to a number of ongoing matters, including disciplinary proceedings involving serious allegations of multi-million pound misappropriation of African Union (AU) funds and false accounting. Barristers in Outer Temple Chambers’ International Team are frequently instructed in cases involving international organisations whose disciplinary and regulatory frameworks are often little known about. International Organisations are established by treaty and possess their own international legal personalities. They also enjoy immunity from suit and – through the application of inter alia international human rights law – most have set up internal justice systems that deal with institutional matters. The African Union The AU is a…
Business Crime, News 22 Jun, 2021
Alex Haines and Sophie O’Sullivan have been instructed by a US-based law firm to represent an Eastern European engineering firm in relation to its sanctions designation under UK legislation and regulation. This is one of the first sanctions challenges to operate within the UK’s new and autonomous statutory framework. From 1st January 2021, the UK was no longer required to implement EU sanctions and the new UK sanctions legislation officially came into force under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 (SAMLA). SAMLA provides the UK with a domestic statutory framework of powers, which enable it to continue to meet its international obligations under the UN Charter to implement UN sanctions law directly in the UK. Put simply, SAMLA fills…
Business Crime, News 21 Apr, 2021
Alex Haines recently featured in an episode of RPC’s Taxing Matters. Alex discussed the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 and the impact it will have on the UK sanctions landscape. The Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 was one of the first of the first Acts passed as a direct result of Brexit. In this RPC Taxing Matters podcast episode, Alex Haines shares his considerable insight on sanctions, how they affect trade and the changes the Act will now bring about. Find out more Taxing Matters is your one stop audio shop for all things tax brought to you by RPC. The podcast explores the sometimes hostile and ever-changing landscape that is the world of tax law and tax…
Brexit, Legal Blog & Publications, Sanctions 1 Mar, 2021
Members of the OTC International Organisations Team have been instructed in several high profile cases this year, including Sanctions Law disputes and cases before the World Bank Administrative Tribunal, United Nations Appeals Tribunal, United Nations Dispute Tribunal and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Administrative Tribunal. But what exactly is International Organisations Law? How many international governmental organisations (“IOs”) exist today? This seemingly straightforward question has kept academics, researches and practitioners busy mostly because nobody knows for certain. There are, on any view, hundreds of IOs: the Oxford Handbook of IOs puts the figure at more than a thousand while Murdoch University in Australia settles on around 800. Some commentators are of the view that the figure is closer to…
Legal Blog & Publications, News, International, International 18 Dec, 2020
Two members of Outer Temple’s International Organisations Law Team instructed in cases before the World Bank Administrative Tribunal in Washington DC. Alex Haines and Victoria Brown have been instructed in two cases before the World Bank Group’s Administrative Tribunal (WBAT). The WBAT was established by the Board of Governors of the Bank in 1980. It acts as a judicial forum of last resort for the resolution of cases submitted by World Bank Group staff members alleging non-observance of their contracts of employment or terms of appointment. The WBAT’s decisions are final and binding on the Bank. The WBAT is composed of seven judges, all of whom are nationals of difference Bank Member States. The WBAT is governed by its Statute…
News 3 Dec, 2020