Rule of Law

Background

The General Assembly in its resolution A/RES/66/102 decided that the high-level meeting of the General Assembly on the rule of law will be held on 24 September 2012 in New York and that the high-level meeting will address the topic of the rule of law at the national and international levels.

General Assembly resolution A/RES/66/102 further states that the organizational arrangements of the high-level meeting should be as follows:

• The high-level meeting will be held as a one-day plenary meeting on Monday, 24 September 2012;
• The President of the General Assembly, the Secretary-General, the President of the International Court of Justice, the President of the Security Council, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the Chair of the International Law Commission, Member States and Observers, as well as a limited number of representatives of non-governmental organizations active in the field of rule of law will be invited to speak at the plenary;
• The President of the General Assembly shall draw up a list of representatives of non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council who will participate in the high-level meeting;
• The President of the General Assembly shall draw up a list of representatives of civil society organizations, including non-governmental organizations active in the field of rule of law and, taking into account the principle of equitable geographical representation, to submit the list to Member States for consideration on a no-objection basis, for participation in the high-level meeting;

The General Assembly resolution A/RES/66/102 also decided that the high-level meeting will result in a concise outcome document. It requested that the President of the General Assembly would, in consultation with Member States, finalize the organizational arrangements of the meeting.

Resources

• UN Rule of Law Website and Document Repository
• High-level meeting on the UN Rule of Law Website

Documents

• A/66/749
• A/RES/66/102

Letters

• Letter dated 12 April to all Permanent Missions and Permanent Observer Missions to the United Nations announcing the appointment of co-facilitators for the High Level meeting on the Rule of Law. (24 September)

Contact Information

• Office of the President of the General Assembly:
  • Civil Society: Ms. Hanifa Mezoui, mezouih @un.org
• Rule of Law Unit, Executive Office of the Secretary-General: rule-of-law @un.org