The World Bank Group Sanctions Board Secretariat is pleased to announce the appointment of three new IBRD/IDA Sanctions Board Members, effective July 1, 2019: Judge John Murphy, Ms. Maria Vicien Milburn, and Ms. Rabab Yasseen.
Judge Murphy, a South African national, has also been appointed to serve as Sanctions Board Chair. Judge Murphy is a Judge of Appeals of the United Nations Appeals Tribunal, where he served as President from January 2018 to December 2018. He is also an Acting Judge of Appeal of the Labour Appeal Court of South Africa and was previously a Judge of the High Court of South Africa (Gauteng Division, Pretoria).
Ms. Vicien Milburn, an Argentinian and Spanish national, is an international lawyer with more than 35 years of experience with the United Nations (UN) System. She has previously served as the General Counsel of UNESCO and Director of the General Legal Division of the UN Office of Legal Affairs.
Ms. Yasseen, a Swiss national, is a partner with the Geneva Law Firm MENTHA, and also serves as Deputy Judge to the Civil Courts in Geneva, Switzerland. Ms. Yasseen has significant arbitration experience including in proceedings under the International Chamber of Commerce and the UN Commission on International Trade Law.
Judge Murphy, Ms. Vicien Milburn, and Ms. Yasseen bring a wealth of experience in cross-border dispute resolution, international law, and international arbitration. Information on all current Sanctions Board Members is available here.
The Secretariat would like to take this opportunity to express sincere appreciation for the distinguished contributions of outgoing Sanctions Board Members Mr. J. James Spinner (Chair, October 2015 – June 2019), Ms. Ellen Gracie Northfleet, and Ms. Catherine O’Regan, who have served on the Sanctions Board since 2012.