Date of initial election to the judicial roster: 20 December 2011
Current term: 1 July 2024 – 30 June 2026
Judge Florence Rita Arrey has been a Judge of the Mechanism since it commenced operations in July 2012. In this capacity, she has adjudicated a variety of matters, including as a Single Judge, and as a member of the Appeals Chamber in the Šešelj case.
Previously, Judge Arrey served as an ad litem Judge of the ICTR from 2003 until 2012, during which time she presided over the Munyakazi and Ndahimana trials, among others. She also served as Vice President of the ICTR from 2011 until 2012.
Judge Arrey is currently a Judge of the Constitutional Council of Cameroon (since 2018) and the first woman to be appointed to this position. She earlier served as Director of Judicial Professions in the Ministry of Justice of Cameroon (2014-2018). Before her appointment to the ICTR, Judge Arrey held a number of positions in the Cameroonian judiciary, including as Judge of the Supreme Court of Cameroon (2000-2003), President of the Court of Appeal in Buea (1994-2000), where she was the first woman to hold that position, President of the Court of Appeal in Bamenda (1990-1994), and Judge of the High Court of Cameroon (1974-1990).
She is a member of the International Association of Women Judges, the Cameroon Chapter of the Commonwealth Magistrates’ and Judges’ Association, the Cameroon Association for Women Judges, and the International Society for the Reform of Criminal Law.
Judge Arrey holds a bachelor’s degree in law from the University of Lagos, Nigeria (1970); a diploma in magistracy from the National School of Administration and Magistracy of Yaoundé, Cameroon (1973); and a diploma in legal drafting and certificate in international law from the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies of the University of London, United Kingdom (1987). She is fluent in English and French.