UN tribunal rules amended so short-term judges can help with pre-trial hearings

The Security Council today amended the rules of the United Nations International Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) so that its pool of short-term judges - each formally assigned to one specific case - might also participate in pre-trial proceedings in other cases during the period of their appointment.

The Council unanimously adopted a new resolution authorizing the change, based on a request made earlier this month by the Tribunal's President, Theodor Meron. In the request, transmitted to Council members in a letter from Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Judge Meron noted that restricting ad litem judges from adjudicating pre-trial proceedings prevented the Tribunal from making the best use of their time.

The Tribunal President also stressed that the limited and temporary character of the ad litem judges work would not be altered by a change in the Statute - each judge would continue to be assigned to one specific case, and only as long as that case continued would the judge assist in the preparation of other cases. Thus, no expense would be incurred by the UN.

The amendment approved by the Council included removal from article 13 of the Statue the provision that ad litem judges could not adjudicate in pre-trial proceedings, and inclusion of a new provision authorizing them to do so in cases they were not appointed to try.