Documents: With tag Judiciary

The reforms conducted under the auspices of the EU negotiations undoubtedly transformed the judiciary accelerated the fight against corruption and improved the system for the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms. Although these reforms enabled Croatia to become a member of the EU, their results and outcomes were not entirely in line with expectations. Moreover, in the case of Croatia like in many other Central and East European EU member states, it is evident and clearly visible that after the EU conditionality had passed many of the started reforms were not finalised due to changes of political priorities or were reversed (either by changing or choosing not to implement the current policies).

This Report following the implementation of the Strategy is structured in line with the plan for monitoring the implementation and for assessment of the results of the 2017-2022 Strategy for Reform of the Judicial Sector, using citizen-oriented indicators, i.e., indicators facilitating the assessment of the interaction of citizens with justice system institutions, as well as the degree of attainment of strategic goals, guidelines, measures, and activities envisaged under the Strategy. The Project Partnership Justicia: Regaining the Citizens’ Trust introduced citizen-oriented indicators for monitoring and assessing the implementation of the Strategy with a view to promoting the rule of law principle and prompting a greater human rights approach and focus within justice system institutions. Such indicators help measure the results of the 2017-2022 Strategy for Reform of the Judicial Sector from the human rights perspective and from the viewpoint of the Strategy’s effects on citizens, aga

Constitutional judiciary has been existing in Macedonia for almost six decades. The First Constitutional Court, as a separate constitutional order institution controlling constitutionality of laws and constitutionality and legality of other general legal acts, was introduced with the 1963 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Macedonia. Its organizational setting, powers and working procedures for exercising its jurisdiction were regulated in detail with a special law. In accordance with its powers, the Constitutional Court exercised additional a posteriori or conditional repressive control over the constitutionality of the laws by making decisions that had the legal effect of determining unconstitutionality of a law. Where the Assembly failed to harmonize the law within 6 months, the Constitutional Court would conclude, with a new decision, that such law was abrogated.

The process of reform of the judiciary in Bulgaria is still ongoing, with no establishment of a solid and clearly defined framework for the judicial system or consensus amidst political parties, the judiciary, and the public on the concept for the development of the setup and organisation of the judicial system in sight. The role and place of the prosecution and investigation against the Prosecutor General and deputies thereof are the issues that fuel most of the debates and are a source of perpetual disagreement. The road towards the resolution of those fundamental issues spreads across the metaphorical minefield that is the legacy of prior amendments, including judgments of the Constitutional Court. The experience of Bulgaria indicates that the consensus of parliamentary parties alone is not sufficient to effect reforms as parliamentary representation tends to be too dynamic, especially in times of crises that follow one after another. A much broader agreement is required, and civil

This Shadow Report streamlines in a coherent unity all findings, conclusions and recommendations deriving from monitoring the areas covered by Chapter 23 -Judiciary and Fundamental Rights. This is the fifth Shadow Report published by the European Policy Institute-Skopje (EPI) while taking into consideration the comments and opinions of the 23 Network members. The previous four Shadow Reports cover the period from October 2014 to July 2015, then the period from July 2015 to April 2016, the period from May 2016 to January 2018 and the period from June 2018 to March 2019.

Continuing its effort in monitoring and participating in the conduction of inclusive and transparent, good quality reforms, the civil society organizations acting in the field of judiciary, which are part of the Blueprint Group for Judicial Reform, conducted this Analysis which elaborates the reformed career flow of the judges, starting from the terms, conditions and procedure for enrollment in the initial training at the Academy for Judges and Public Prosecutors good quality; the terms, conditions and procedure for election as a judge in the basic and administrative courts; terms, conditions and procedure for election of a judge in the higher courts, grounds and procedure for determining disciplinary liability until termination and dismissal from the judicial office.