Judgment 4161
128th Session, 2019
World Intellectual Property Organization
Extracts: EN,
FR
Full Judgment Text: EN,
FR
Summary: The complainant challenges the validity of a settlement agreement.
Consideration 8
Extract:
With regard to the complainant’s psychological state, it is not disputed that he was declared unfit for work and granted a disability benefit. Moreover, in the present proceedings the complainant has submitted several medical documents showing that he suffered from depression. However, that circumstance is not sufficient on its own to warrant a finding of a total lack of judgement (see Judgment 856, consideration 6). [...]
First, the plethora of evidence attesting to the requests submitted and the action taken by the complainant with a view to obtaining an amicable settlement shows clearly that he did not lack judgement. Next, it should be noted that although the complainant put forward a proposal for a settlement on 18 April 2013 and re-submitted it on 27 August 2013 and 28 October 2014, the discussions started in earnest on 7 November 2014 when the complainant’s counsel asked the Organization to tell him what conditions it would accept. These negotiations lasted nearly three months, giving the complainant ample time for reflection in which he could have retracted his requests for a settlement. Lastly, from the start of these discussions until the signing of the agreement, the complainant was represented by a lawyer, whose role was to inform and assist him.
The evidence provided by the complainant is not sufficient to cast doubt on his mental faculties given that, following negotiations which he himself initiated with the assistance of his counsel, he eventually accepted an offer that was distinctly advantageous from a financial point of view (for a similar case, see Judgment 2049, considerations 2 to 5).
Reference(s)
ILOAT Judgment(s): 856, 2049
Keywords:
amicable settlement; consent;
Consideration 8
Extract:
The argument that the complainant needed to provide for his family must be rejected since he cannot be considered to have been in such dire necessity that his consent was not valid (see Judgment 3091, consideration 15).
Reference(s)
ILOAT Judgment(s): 3091
Keywords:
amicable settlement; consent;
