Onsite visits to selected pilot courts in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and Gaziantep under the Joint Project on Improving the Effectiveness of the Administrative Judiciary and Strengthening the Institutional Capacity of the Council of State were conducted between 16-23 May 2022 by the project team, judges from the Ministry of Justice and international consultant Mr Ray Burningham.
The aim of these visits was to brief the pilot courts concerning the work on guidance materials for court users and court staff and collect their feedback thereon, to discuss action planning in accordance with the court survey results, to propose a tailored Media and Public Relations Action Plan and to collect respective opinions and comments of the pilot courts to integrate them in the Final Assessment Report. A court implementation plan was also discussed to ensure action on the proposed plan.
To this end, the visit to the Istanbul Regional Administrative Court (RAC) was conducted in 16 May, where the RAC President delivered a presentation, followed by the presentation by the project team on the status of the Road Map, pilot court activities, court user survey findings to allow for discussion on the next steps. Further meetings at the Istanbul RAC on 17 May 2022 provided a platform for an extensive discussion on the Media and Public Relations Action Plan, with the participation of the communication consultant of the project and the communication unit as well as the staff of the court.
On 20 May 2022, the Ankara RAC was visited after a meeting held at the Union of Turkish Bar Association with the Directorate for Legal Affairs and feedback from the pilot court judges focus group on processes and procedures was received. Again, views and opinions of the pilot court judges and staff on court user survey findings and recommendations for further improvement of the Action Plan were collected.
The visits continued in Izmir on 18 May 2022 and in Gaziantep on 23 May 2022, whereby the workload of the RACs and first instance courts, experience levels of judges and court staff, challenges specific to the region were discussed and opinions were exchanged on priority areas for reform. In addition, the RAC judges gave their feedback on the Media and Action Plan recommendations and court user survey results. A further meeting was held separately with the pilot court presidents, judges and court staff, who worked on the elaboration of the guide on workflow in the RAC Chambers.
It is assumed that the outcomes of the regional level discussions will help to inform the content of the Final Assessment Report and possible updates to the Road Map before the conclusion of the project.
The Joint Project on Improving the Effectiveness of the Administrative Judiciary and Strengthening the Institutional Capacity of the Council of State is co-funded by the European Union, the Council of Europe and the Republic of Turkey, and implemented by the Council of Europe. The Turkish Ministry of Justice - Directorate General for Legal Affairs is the end beneficiary of the Project. The Central Finance and Contracts Unit is the contracting authority of this Project.
