����AV

The Dispute Tribunal rejected the application as irreceivable ratione materiae and ratione temporis, on the grounds that the applicant did not submit a request for management evaluation of the contested decision within the applicable deadline, and that the application was filed more than three years after receipt of the contested decision. Identification of the contested decision: As the Appeals Tribunal held in Massabni 2012-UNAT-238, it is part of the duties and of the inherent powers of a Judge to adequately interpret and comprehend the applications submitted by the parties, and to “identify what is in fact being contested”. In practice, this is all the more important when the Applicant is self-represented and not legally trained. Time limit to submit an application to the Dispute Tribunal: Pursuant to art. 8.4 of the Dispute Tribunal’s Statute, an application is irreceivable ratione temporis when it is filed more than three years after receipt of the contested decision. Abuse of process: A repeated failure to observe the minimal requirements for filing an application may lead the Tribunal to award costs against an applicant to prevent an abuse of proceedings.