Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵAT Held or Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵDT Pronouncements
Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵAT held that the appeal was receivable on the basis that the Appellant was not challenging the new scheme for education grant introduced by the General Assembly, but rather the manner in which it was implemented in her specific case and the way in which the Secretary-General interpreted General Assembly Resolution 70/244. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵAT held that Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵDT did not err in deciding that the Appellant did not have an acquired right to all of the previous education benefits she had enjoyed. On the question of the Appellant¡¯s access to a discretionary consideration of her claims on exceptional grounds, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵAT held that the Staff Regulation (as amended) excluded boarding claims for dependent tertiary students in circumstances such as the Appellant¡¯s. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵAT dismissed the appeal and affirmed the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵDT judgment.
Decision Contested or Judgment/Order Appealed
The Applicant contested the decision not to pay boarding and travel-related expenses for tertiary education in respect of her two dependent children. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵDT found the Applicant¡¯s claims receivable. However, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵDT found against the Applicant on the merits, essentially because her circumstances fell outside the recently modified eligibility criteria for such assistance. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵDT also rejected her alternative case that she was entitled to rely on previously acquired rights to such assistance.
Legal Principle(s)
Acquired rights are to be distinguished from contractual rights. Acquired rights may include contractual rights, but also may comprise a bundle of enhanced employment contractual rights. An acquired right must be a right that has vested.