From 27 to 31 May 2024, the Legal Counsel of the United Nations, Mr. Miguel de Serpa Soares visited Montreal, Canada, to chair the annual meetings of the informal network of the Legal Advisers of the specialized agencies and the related and other organizations of the United Nations System, and the informal network of the Legal Advisers of the United Nations Offices, Funds and Programmes.Â
The meetings were hosted by International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), through its Director of Legal Affairs and External Relations Bureau, Mr. Michael Gill.  The purpose of the network meetings is to provide a forum for discussion of legal issues of common interest and concern to the Legal Advisers of the participating entities, to improve coordination and communication among the Legal Advisers and to promote system-wide legal coherence. Topics on this year’s agenda ranged from the issue of conditionality clauses in funding agreements, innovative and alternative funding mechanisms, and data protection, to updates on legal aspects of the situations in Ukraine and Gaza, and an overview of United Nations Appeals Tribunal judgements.  Mr. Juan Carlos Salazar, Secretary-General of ICAO, addressed the joint session of the two networks.
