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Judges Claude Hanoteau and György Szénási Sworn in as Ad Litem Judges of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia

Press Release . Communiqué de presse

(Exclusively for the use of the media. Not an official document)


CHAMBERS
CHAMBRES

The Hague, 25 January 2005

CT/P.I.S./930e




JUDGES CLAUDE HANOTEAU AND GYÖRGY SZÉNÁSI SWORN IN AS AD LITEM JUDGES OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL FOR THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA




Following resolutions in the Security Council and General Assembly and their appointment by the United Nations Secretary-General, Judges Claude Hanoteau (France) and György Szénási (Hungary) were sworn in today, 25 January 2005, as ad litem Judges of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).




BIOGRAPHICAL DETAILS


Judge Claude Hanoteau:
Judge Claude Hanoteau was born 4 January 1939 in Paris.


Judge Hanoteau studied law at the Faculty of Law, Paris, receiving a bachelor’s degree in law in 1961 completing the competitive entrance examination for the National School of Magistrates in September of the same year. In September 1963, he entered the National School of Magistrates and completed final examinations in June 1966.


Prior to his appointment as an ad litem Judge for the ICTY, Judge Hanoteau served as Director of the National School of Magistrates from July 1988 to the present. From 1994 to 1998, he served as Senior President of the Court of Appeal of Rennes and from 1992 to 1994 as Senior President of the Court of Appeal of Papeete in French Polynesia, as well as serving regularly as
President of the Assize Court of French Polynesia.


In addition, Judge Hanoteau served as President of the Court of Major Jurisdiction of Créteil (Val de Marne), a court within the Court of Appeal of Paris from 1990 to 1992 and Senior President of the Court of Appeal of Nouméa (New Caledonia) from 1988 to 1990. From 1983 to 1987, he served as a Judge at the Court of Appeal of Paris, with sole responsibility for one of the
Presidencies of the Assize Court, and from 1981 to 1983 he served as Vice-President of the Court of Major Jurisdiction of Paris.


From 1973 to 1981, Judge Hanoteau also served as senior examining magistrate at the Court of Major Jurisdiction of Paris and examining magistrate at successively the Courts of Major Jurisdiction of Arras, Lille and Lyon from 1966 to 1973.


Judge Hanoteau was involved in two referendum-monitoring missions in connection with the independence of the Comoro Islands and the Territory of the Afars and the Issas (Djibouti). He also took part in work carried out in Paris and New York by the Vera Institute of the Marshall Fund on the use of social inquiries by criminal courts in 1981.


Throughout his career, Judge Hanoteau had the following experience: Rapporteur of the Committee on Violence, 1973; teacher at the National School of Magistrates, 1976-1980; Chairman, subsequently serving on Board of Directors for APCARS, working for Court of Paris, 1980-1984.




Judge György Szénási:
Judge Szénási was born in Budapest in 1946.


Following completion of his Law Degree (Doctor Iuris) at the Loránd Eötvös University in Budapest in 1971, he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Hungary.


Beginning his career at the Ministry as a Legal Officer at the International Law Department, Judge Szénási served as Secretary of the Permanent Mission of Hungary to the United Nations Office at Geneva from 1975-1979, participating in several diplomatic and international conferences of a legal character. In 1979, he became Senior Legal Officer, then Deputy Head of the International
Law Department at the Ministry, remaining in this post until 1985. From 1986 to 1990, Judge Szénási was Counsellor of the Permanent Mission of Hungary to the United Nations Office at Geneva and as such participated in several delegations to UN Conferences. In 1990, he was named Head of the International Law Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, holding this post until
2000.


Judge Szénási was Agent for the Government of Hungary in the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros Project dispute between Hungary and Slovakia, heard before the International Court of Justice. He served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary on various Committees and Conferences of a legal and international character. He was also responsible for renegotiating bilateral treaty relations
with former Socialist countries and was chief negotiator of bilateral treaties between Hungary and Switzerland and then with Croatia on the peaceful settlement of disputes (conciliation and arbitration).


During his career, Judge Szénási has contributed to the elaboration of domestic legislation in the fields of diplomatic and similar privileges and immunities and on the procedure for concluding international treaties. He also contributed to the draft law on the procedure concerning the conclusion of international treaties and the related draft amendment to the Constitution.


Judge Szénási has had two recent publications; "Role of the International Court of Justice in the development of international environmental law" a paper presented at the ICJ/UNITAR Colloquium to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ICJ and "Some aspects of case-management and the Hungarian Experience" presented before the ICJ.


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