November 17, 2025
It is truly a pleasure to welcome the distinguished participants of this two-day symposium celebrating the 45th anniversary of the World Bank Administrative Tribunal.
For the last four and a half decades, the Tribunal has provided the Bank Group and its staff with an independent judicial forum where workplace disputes could be fairly and thoroughly addressed and remedied. That is the simple explanation of what the Tribunal does.
Against the larger backdrop of international case law, of global institutions, of the evolving rights of workers, the Tribunal has had – and continues to have – a much more far-reaching influence. It provides a powerful example of how the rule of law can live within the culture of a global organization and strengthen it.
Governance is at the heart of what we do
Let me take a moment to talk about governance, because it is a concept we often invoke, but perhaps do not pause enough to unpack.
Governance is about how power is exercised — how decisions are made, how institutions are held accountable, and how rules are applied in a fair and predictable manner.
Good governance is not an abstract ideal. It is an essential ingredient of development. Without it, countries struggle to translate resources into results, or policies into progress.
For the World Bank Group, this is not just theory—it is embedded in our very mission.
Every day, we support countries striving to improve transparency, strengthen accountability systems, and build trust between institutions and citizens. And we remind ourselves that these values must be lived internally as well. We cannot credibly ask countries to uphold good governance if we do not hold ourselves to the same standards.
This is why the Tribunal’s role is so important: it ensures that our own house reflects the principles we advocate globally.
The Rule of Law and its Place in Good Governance
In 2017, the World Development Report on Governance and the Law highlighted that the rule of law is foundational to good governance.
The report put it plainly, and it is worth recalling today:
“It has long been established that the rule of law—which at its core requires that government officials and citizens be bound by and act consistently with the law—is the very basis of the good governance needed to realize full social and economic potential.”
The rule of law is not simply about courts or legal texts. It is about ensuring that both citizens and officials — including those in powerful positions — are bound by consistent rules. That fairness is not optional. Those rights are respected. That discretion is exercised responsibly and never arbitrarily. And that there are checks and balances to guard against abuse.
We know from decades of development work—and from empirical evidence—that when the rule of law is strong, societies prosper. Property rights are secure, innovation thrives, trust increases, and justice becomes accessible.
The same logic applies within international organizations. If we expect rule-based governance from others, we must practice it ourselves.
The Role of the Tribunal in Promoting Good Governance
This brings me to the heart of today’s occasion: the role of the World Bank Administrative Tribunal.
Let us remember a fundamental fact: the World Bank Group is not subject to the domestic courts of any member country. This legal independence is essential to our work. But it also places a special burden on us. As the Principles of Staff Employment clearly state:
“The fact that the World Bank and IFC are not subject to the employment legislation of any of their member countries imposes a special obligation on the Organizations in the relationship between them and their staff.”
The Tribunal exists because of that obligation. It ensures that all staff—and all managers up to the highest levels—are held to the rules and principles that govern our institution.
Two duties are central to this system:
The duty of staff to uphold the highest standards of integrity and professionalism, and
The duty of the institution is to act with fairness, impartiality, and due process.
These principles are a commitment - and it is one the Tribunal has safeguarded for 45 years—steadily, consistently, and without fear or favor.
Reflecting on History and Purpose of Tribunal
Robert Gorman, the longest-serving president of the Tribunal, has spoken of his initial meeting with Robert McNamara in 1979 – the year before the Tribunal was created. Mr. Gorman was among a group of leading legal minds who were tapped to be the architects of the Administrative Tribunal, which now anchors the World Bank Group’s internal justice system and contributes to international labor law in significant ways.
For the creators of the Tribunal, there were two important goals:
First, as an impartial agency, the Tribunal would assure that the Bank management conformed to the rule of law.
And second, as a trusted and transparent entity, it would keep Bank staff morale and efficacy high.
The Bank’s Administrative Tribunal has accomplished that goal by fiercely guarding its independence, by firmly protecting the due process rights of the staff who come before it, and by fairly considering durable remedies. It has both protected the reputation of the World Bank Group and uplifted the Bank as an employer for dedicated people who want to work on issues that affect the well-being of communities around the world.
Let me speak for a moment in more detail about the Tribunal’s importance to our staff.
The World Bank Group is an unusual institution. It operates in a highly protected environment. It lacks the usual checks and balances of a private organization or the accountability of a government agency. To provide its staff with their day in court, so to speak, it has had to build its own internal justice system.
Since its first decision, the Administrative Tribunal has rendered over 700 judgments. Along the way, it has built an impressive body of case law.
Some of the Tribunal’s rulings have addressed common employment grievances. Others have tackled more complex labor issues. Those include whistleblowers, pay parity, and gender equity. Tribunal decisions have also set principles and benchmarks that define the balance between managerial discretion and staff rights. In many cases, the decisions have brought about transformative workplace reforms.
This Brings me to Balancing Discretion and Accountability
Management, of course, must be able to exercise discretion. Institutions cannot function without it. But that discretion is not absolute—and from its earliest days, the Tribunal has reaffirmed the limits of managerial authority.
As stated in several judgements, the Tribunal cannot interfere with management’s discretion unless the decision is arbitrary, discriminatory, improperly motivated, or carried out in violation of a fair and reasonable procedure.
These principles have guided decades of jurisprudence. They recognize the need for efficient management decisions, while ensuring that such decisions are never exercised arbitrarily or without due process.
This is the essence of governance: balancing authority with accountability; flexibility with fairness; discretion with the rule of law.
To conclude, at the World Bank, governance is not just a word — it is a practice. Access to an independent judicial body is essential for good governance, and my hope is that the work of the Tribunal in this regard will continue for decades to come.
As we mark this 45th anniversary, the next two days will offer a deeper perspective on the Tribunal’s groundbreaking work. When the Tribunal was established, the World Bank had just 5,000 employees; today, our staff has more than doubled — making its role even more essential.
The Administrative Tribunal was founded on a core principle: whenever administrative authority is exercised, there must be a fair mechanism — grounded in due process — to resolve disputes. This same principle is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In this spirit, the Tribunal has not only advanced the rule-of-law in the Bank, but its decisions have helped other international organizations in their evolution.
Let me close by once again by congratulating the Tribunal – past and present – for its extraordinary work and by warmly welcoming you to what promises to be an important and insightful event.
