the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which meets annually in New York.2 Elections for members of the Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights take place every two years in the context of meetings of the Economic and Social Council in New York. Treaty body members serve terms of four years which are renewable. In the case of CRPD, CED and SPT, terms may be renewed only once. In order to maintain some continuity in the membership, the election of half of the membership is staggered so that elections take place every two years for each treaty. How are candidates nominated? Members of treaty bodies are elected by states parties from a list of candidates nominated by states parties. Although the wording of the specific provisions in each treaty varies slightly, the following common elements relating to the qualifications and selection criteria for treaty body members may be found in each treaty: •  Treaty body members are independent: although they are nominated by the State party of their nationality and are elected by States parties, they serve in their personal capacity; members should also be recognized as impartial. •  Treaty body members are recognized experts in the field of human rights and/or the field covered by the treaty. Some treaties suggest that legal ex2 T he CRPD is the only treaty to have a standing conference which meets annually and, in addition to providing the venue for the biennial elections, discusses issues related to the implementation of the Convention by States parties; for all other treaties, conferences of states parties are convened on an ad hoc basis at the request of States parties, usually for a specific purpose such as amending the treaty. Meetings of States Parties are stand-alone meetings convened with the specific purpose of conducting elections of treaty body members. 11