Judgment No. 4286
Decision
1. WIPO shall pay the complainant 25,000 Swiss francs in moral damages.
2. WIPO shall pay the complainant 7,000 Swiss francs costs.
3. All other claims are dismissed.
Summary
The complainant challenges the decision to reject her claim of retaliation/harassment.
Judgment keywords
Keywords
complaint allowed; harassment; retaliation; institutional harassment
Consideration 1
Extract:
The complainant applies for oral hearings, pursuant to Article 12, paragraph 1, of the Tribunal’s Rules. The application is rejected in view of the ample submissions and documentary evidence provided by the parties, which fully inform the Tribunal about this complaint.
Keywords
oral proceedings
Consideration 2
Extract:
The complainant’s request for the disclosure of documents is also rejected as it is cast in general, imprecise and speculative terms, which constitute an impermissible “fishing expedition” (see, for example, Judgments 4086, under 9, and 3345, under 9).
Reference(s)
ILOAT Judgment(s): 3345, 4086
Keywords
disclosure of evidence; fishing expedition
Consideration 7
Extract:
[The complainant's] allegations are [...] the subject of the complainant’s eighth complaint and will not be considered in this judgment by virtue of the general principle of law that a person cannot simultaneously litigate the same issues in separate or concurrent proceedings.
Keywords
general principle; parallel proceedings
Consideration 17
Extract:
The Appeal Board’s approach to the substance of the complainant’s allegations of retaliation and reprisals, endorsed by the Director General in the impugned decision, was flawed on two bases. In the first place, its statement that the complainant had only substantiated two of the incidents upon which she relied was inaccurate. Her rejoinder in the Appeal Board’s proceedings shows that she substantiated other alleged incidents. In the second place, the Board did not appreciate that although it was not required to find the facts, that being within the purview of the IOD, it was nevertheless required to weigh the detailed evidence (including the rebuttals) which the IOD had adduced in its investigations (see Judgment 4085, under 15). As a result, the Board failed to consider whether there was an accumulation of repeated events which deeply and adversely affected the complainant’s dignity and career objectives. It also failed to consider whether there was a long series of examples of mismanagement and omissions by the Organization that compromised her dignity and career constituting institutional harassment (see, for example, Judgment 3250, under 9). The Board therefore did not consider all relevant facts and drew wrong conclusions from the facts. These failures constitute an error of law (see, for example, Judgment 2616, under 24), as well as a violation of the complainant’s right to effective appeal proceedings (see, for example, Judgment 3424, under 11(a) and (b)).
Reference(s)
ILOAT Judgment(s): 2616, 3250, 3424, 4085
Keywords
internal appeals body; right of appeal; mistake of law; harassment; institutional harassment
Consideration 19
Extract:
In light of the [...] findings, the Tribunal would in principle set aside the impugned decision and remit the matter to the organization concerned. However, in view of the effluxion of time that course of action would be impracticable. The complainant is no longer a staff member of WIPO and the result of her harassment complaint is yet to be determined. The Tribunal concludes that the complainant suffered moral injury [...].
Keywords
moral injury; case sent back to organisation
Consideration 19
Extract:
The Tribunal considers the complainant’s claim for exemplary damages to be unsustainable as she has provided no evidence or analysis to demonstrate that there was bias, ill will, malice, bad faith or other improper purpose on which to base an award of exemplary damages (see, for example, Judgment 3419, under 8).
Reference(s)
ILOAT Judgment(s): 3419
Keywords
exemplary damages
Consideration 7
Extract:
That issue is not receivable as it was not raised in the internal appeal.
Keywords
new claim; new plea
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