Austria Nominates First Woman Judge to the General Court of the European Union
Austria needs to nominate persons to succeed the next term of office of the incumbent Austrian judges at the General Court of the European Union. Austria nominates the first woman judge to the General Court of the European Union, Mrs. Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger.
Mrs. Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger in Geneva, Switzerland. / Picture: © Wikimedia Commons /Antoine Tardy, CC BY-SA 4.0
Austria nominated the first woman for a position as a judge to the General Court of the European Union. MMag.a Dr.in Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger will succeed the next term of office of the incumbent Austrian judges at the General Court of the European Union (EGC).
Together with the European Court of Justice (ECJ), the EGC is responsible for ensuring the correct interpretation and application of EU law.
The term of office of judges at the EGC lasts 6 years, and the nomination period is thus 2022-2028. Persons with extensive legal skills, many years of relevant professional experience and, among other things, knowledge of several official languages of the European Union may be appointed.
This morning in the main committee of the National Council the agreement on the suggestion of the Federal Government was made. As a further consequence, Tichy Fisslberger will still face the hearing before the responsible committee on the European Union level.
Of the candidates considered, the Federal Government agreed on the proposal of Ambassador MMag.a Dr.in Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger, Permanent Representative of Austria to the United Nations in Geneva.
Federal Minister for the EU and Constitution Karoline Edtstadler stressed, "I am pleased that with Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger we are nominating a woman as a judge at the EGC for the first time. She is an excellent jurist and her many years of expertise make her ideally suited for this office. At this point, I would also like to express my sincere thanks to Dr. Viktor Kreuschitz for his work as a judge at the EGC."
Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger is an Austrian lawyer and diplomat. Mrs. Tichy-Fisslberger has been the Permanent Representative of her country to the United Nations Office in Geneva since December 2017 and was President of the UN Human Rights Council for 2020.
Mrs. Tichy-Fisslberger was present at Austria's EU accession negotiations and On December 6, 2019, the UN Human Rights Council elected Tichy-Fisslberger as its president for 2020, which Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg saw as recognition of Austria's international efforts in the human rights field.
Mrs. Tichy-Fisslberger is a member of the International Gender Champions network, which advocates for gender equity in international organizations as well.
Throughout her career, Mrs. Tichy-Fisslberger has served in various capacities.
| Curriculum Vitae: | |
| Date of Birth: | 1957 in Vienna, Austria |
| Education: | |
|
1976-1980 (simultaneously) |
Law studies at Vienna University / Language studies at Vienna University (French, Spanish) |
| 1981 |
Louvain-la-Neuve University, Belgium (Scholarship for International law) |
| Career History: | |
| 1982-1988 |
European Commission |
| April 1988 |
Entry into the Austrian Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Directorate General for European and Economic Affairs |
| Jan.-July 1990 |
Austrian Embassy Dublin |
| July 1990 – March 1991 |
Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Directorate General for Economic and European Policy Affairs |
| March 1991-July 1992 |
Deputy Director for EU Transport Policy |
| July 1992-Jan 1993 |
Austrian Embassy London |
| Jan 1993 - July 1993 |
Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Directorate General for European and Economic Affairs, Vienna |
| July 1993 –June 2000 |
Permanent Representation of Austria to the EU, Brussels |
| July 2000 |
Director for General EU Matters and EU institutions, Vienna |
| Dec. 2003 |
Deputy Director General for European and Economic Affairs, Vienna |
| 2007-2017 |
Director General for Legal and Consular Affairs at the Federal Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs |
| since 2009 |
National Coordinator for the fight against Human Trafficking |
| 2017-2019 |
Permanent Representative of Austria to the United Nations Office at Geneva |
| 2019-2020 |
President of the United Nations Human Rights Council |
| Languages: | English, Italian, French, Spanish |
| Family: | Married, one daughter |
Federal Chancellery of Austria
Permanent Mission of Austria to the United Nations to Geneva