Newsroom
Meetings to present the Recommendations developed by CEPEJ experts to two pilot prosecution offices in the Kingdom of Morocco
On 16 July 2021, the CEPEJ experts will present concrete and specific recommendations formulated within the framework of the evaluation of the functioning and working processes of two pilot prosecution offices of the Programme "Improving the functioning of justice in Morocco on the basis of tools...
Workshop on mediation in Tunisia: Exchanges about the introduction of mediation in a country in the light of the CEPEJ guidelines and the comparative European experiences
In continuity of the actions dedicated to mediation initiated since the beginning of the year, the CEPEJ, in cooperation with the Tunisian National Bar Association (ONAT) organised on 12 July 2021 a workshop dedicated to the integration of mediation in a national system. Regarding the existing...
The CEPEJ at the 2021 HELP Network Conference “Upholding the Rule of Law”
On 1-2 July 2021, the Council of Europe Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP) held its 2021 Annual Network Conference. The Conference was organised under the auspices of the Hungarian Chairmanship of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers.HELP is an entity...
The CEPEJ publishes a Handbook on court dashboards
A dashboard is an efficient tool to track, analyse and display multiple data in one court location. Based on performance indicators, it helps the courts, its managers and justice professionals, to monitor and analyse their efficiency giving an overall picture of their performance, and thus to...
The President of the CEPEJ at the Conference of Heads of Prosecutor’s Offices, St Petersburg
From 6 to 9 July 2021, Mr Ramin Garagurbanli, President of the CEPEJ participates in the high-level conference “Role of Prosecutor’s Office in Protection of Individual Rights and Public Interest in Light of Requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights” co-organised jointly by the...
The CEPEJ adopts its guidelines on videoconferencing in judicial proceedings
At its plenary meeting on 16 and 17 June 2021, the CEPEJ adopted new tools prepared by its working groups who continued their work despite the sanitary crisis. The development of information technology and the integration of artificial intelligence into judicial systems are an integral part of...
Presentation of the Analysis on how CEPEJ methods can be applied on judicial statistics in Georgia
On 25 June 2021 from 12 until 2 pm Georgian time (10 am to 12 Strasbourg/French time), the CEPEJ will organise an online seminar to present the analysis of existing data and statistical reporting processes to demonstrate how CEPEJ methods can be applied with the aim to guide and support policy...
Court management online training session in Azerbaijan
From 23 to 25 June 2021, the CEPEJ organises an online training session for trainers on court management, in particular on the collection and analysis of judicial statistics, performance evaluation, measuring the quality of justice and case and time management. The participants are judges and...
Seminar on "Mediation in civil matters: practices and foundations" for Tunisian lawyers
From 22 to 24 June 2021, the CEPEJ, in cooperation with the National Order of Tunisian Lawyers (ONAT), is organising 3 seminars on “Mediation in civil matters and foundations”. Comparative European experiences, practices and foundations will be presented by the CEPEJ experts. This event is a...
Awareness-raising workshop on change management towards cyberjustice for administrative directors of Moroccan courts
On 24 June 2021, the CEPEJ will organise a face-to-face workshop in Rabat and an online workshop with CEPEJ experts to raise awareness of change management towards cyberjustice for administrative directors of Moroccan courts. Representatives of the Moroccan Ministry of Justice will present the...
Online conference on artificial intelligence in the field of justice for future Tunisian magistrates
In the framework of the support to the initial training of Tunisian magistrates, in partnership with the Tunisian Higher Institute for Magistracy (ISM) and the Tunisian Ministry of Justice, the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) is organising an online conference on the...
Artificial intelligence and digital justice at the heart of the discussions of the next CEPEJ plenary meeting
During its plenary meeting of 16 and 17 June 2021, which will be held online, the CEPEJ should adopt a certain number of tools prepared by its working groups which continued their work despite the health crisis. In order to fulfil its mission of guarantor of human rights and protection of...
Launch of the 2nd edition of the "Junior Crystal Scales of Justice" Prize - Edition 2022
This Prize, organised jointly by the CEPEJ and the Faculty of Law of Strasbourg, complements the existing Crystal Scales of Justice Prize. It is open to Master's students from law schools in one of the member States of the Council of Europe or an observer country to the CEPEJ and is organised...
Training on appeals against acts of enforcement agents in national courts in the Republic of Moldova
In June 2021 a series of 10 on-line training seminars are conducted in the field of enforcement in civil and administrative matters, largely based on the new Commentary to the Enforcement Code, recently developed at the initiative of the Council of Europe. The agenda is focused on the examination...
Evaluation of the performance of enforcement systems and reporting in the Republic of Moldova
An online Seminar on the evaluation and reporting on the performance of enforcement systems and their agents was conducted in the Republic of Moldova. The seminar gathered 25 participants, from the Moldovan National Union of Enforcement Agents as well as court presidents and judges. With the...
Workshop on Automatic Re-Assignment of Criminal Cases
On 15 June 2021, the CEPEJ organised a hybrid workshop on implementation of an automatic Re-Assignment of judges and/or judicial panels in criminal cases during which CEPEJ experts presented their findings and recommendations. These recommendations aim to address situations when judges designated...
Improving the methodology of distribution of resources in the Moldovan judiciary by using statistical data
The CEPEJ organised on 20 May 2021 a second online seminar on taking decisions with regard to the distribution of resources based on objective data about workload, efficiency and quality of judicial services. The ability of the courts and of the judiciary in general to properly evaluate and...
Online conference on the role of the judge in mediation for future Tunisian magistrates
An online conference on "The Judge and Mediation" will be jointly organised by the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ), the Tunisian High Institute of Magistracy and the Tunisian Ministry of Justice on 11 June 2021 in the framework of the support of the initial training of...
More efficient courts in Latvia thanks to new technologies
On 8 June 2021, the CEPEJ, in co-operation with the Latvian Ministry of Justice, is organising an online seminar on new technology solutions for more efficient courts in Latvia, with a particular focus on digitisation and electronic case management. CEPEJ experts from Portugal, Austria, Italy and...
Closure of the Cooperation Project on 9 June 2021 in the presence of the Latvian Minister of Justice and the President of the CEPEJ
On 9 June 2021 the CEPEJ, in cooperation with the Latvian Ministry of Justice, will celebrate the closure followed by the meeting of the Steering Committee of the Cooperation Project initiated in September 2019 "Strengthening the access to justice in Latvia through fostering mediation and legal...
Launch of the Justice Dashboard Eastern Partnership Project
On 8 June 2021, the CEPEJ will launch the Project "Support for a better evaluation of the results of judicial reform efforts in the Eastern Partnership - Justice Dashboard EaP” through an online meeting with the beneficiary countries, the representatives of the European Commission and the...
The CEPEJ publishes a specific study on enforcement of court decisions
Based on the 2018 data collected and processed by CEPEJ, the International Union of Judicial Officers (UIHJ) prepared a specific study on enforcement agents. This study, adopted by the CEPEJ Working Group on Evaluation (CEPEJ-GT-EVAL) represents a complement to the CEPEJ European judicial systems...
Training for Latvian court judges on the length of proceedings and practice related to the case law of the European Court of Human Rights
The CEPEJ, in cooperation with the Latvian Ministry of Justice, organised on 2 June 2021, a training on Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and more particularly on the excessive length of proceedings and the practice related to the case law of the European Court of Human...
Webinar on reasonable length of proceedings and case backlog in Georgian courts
Among the series of webinars dedicated to “Judicial proceedings within reasonable time”, this second webinar organised on 3rd of June, was to present the concept of CEPEJ timeframes in conformity with Article 6 of the European Convention of Human Rights as well as to explain the notion of...
Conclusions of the seminar on possible solutions for a better management of cases in courts at the time of the Covid-19 crisis for Tunisian magistrates and registrars
Magistrates and chief registrars from different jurisdictions met on 5 May to exchange with CEPEJ international and national experts on best practices for the internal management of European and Tunisian courts in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic The main conclusions of this videoconference...
CEPEJ works with lawyers to develop expertise on civil mediation
On 28 May 2021, the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) and the Tunisian National Bar Association (ONAT) will co-organise a seminar on "Mediation in civil matters: which practices and which foundations?" for the attention of Tunisian lawyers. During this event, European...
The CEPEJ participated in the National day of access to law organised in Strasbourg at the judicial court
The aim of the National Day of Access to Law is to familiarise citizens with the actors of justice and to enable them to better know and exercise their rights. The participation of the CEPEJ in this national day was part of its mission to bring users closer to their justice system and to...
Interventions of the President of the CEPEJ about E-justice in the framework of the celebration of 25 years of cooperation between the Council of Europe and the Russian Federation
On 20 May 2021, Mr Ramin Gurbanov (GARAGURBANLI) took part in the St Petersburg International Legal Forum, on a session devoted to Digitalization and Cybersecurity in Courts. On the edge of this Forum, the 19 May, he also took part in the 14th annual training cycle for civil servants organised...
Meeting of the CEPEJ Working Group on Cyberjustice and Artificial Intelligence to finalise guidelines on the use of videoconferencing in judicial proceedings
Since the beginning of the health crisis, the courts have had to find alternatives to allow the continuity of the functioning of justice, and in this framework, the use of videoconferencing has been widely developed. The Working Group on Cyberjustice and Artificial Intelligence...
The European Union and the Council of Europe help bring European standards to justice systems in Eastern Partnership countries
The European Union and the Council of Europe present the “Justice Dashboard EaP” with the objective of better measuring the impact of the justice reform efforts of the Eastern Partnership countries. The rule of law, fair justice systems and functioning of democratic institutions are crucial...
CEPEJ support to developing a Latvian case weighting model
On 28 April 2021, the Latvian Court Administration and the Working Group responsible for the implementation of the Action Plan on Strengthening the effectiveness of the courts and improving the methods of judicial administration which includes a case-weighing model, presented and discussed the...
Exchanges of Good practices in cyberjustice project management between the Ministry of Justice of Spain and experts from other European countries
In the framework of the implementation of the programme for the digital transformation of justice, the Spanish Ministry of Justice wished to exchange information and experiences with international partners on how to rationalise the judicial organisation in a context of digitalisation, on the...
Tunisian lawyers are trained in mediation
A training course on "The lawyer and mediation" was organised on 30 and 31 March in semi-face-to-face format in Tunis. Aimed at lawyers, it was organized in partnership with the National Order of Lawyers (ONAT) as part of the AP-JUST "Improving functioning, performance and access to justice in...
Conclusions of the Round Table organised on the theme "Justice for the future: the impact of the health crisis on the functioning of judicial systems in the Southern Mediterranean countries
About sixty participants from Ministries of Justice, representatives of Councils of State, judges, legal professionals and lawyers from 7 of the Southern Mediterranean regions (Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine* and Tunisia) took part on 8 April in an online Round Table on the...
Exchange of best practices between the Supreme Court of Slovenia and the French Court of Cassation on improving the quality of justice
As part of the reflection of the Supreme courts on the reforms of their organisation, the French Court of Cassation wished to learn about the project "IQ Justice - Improving the Quality of Justice" initiated and implemented by the Supreme Court of Slovenia. This project, winner of the 2019...
Training of Tunisian clerks of justice in the financial and administrative management of the regional administrations of the Ministry of Justice
A first training workshop, organised in Tunis from 5 to 8 April 2021, enabled 25 clerks of justice and agents from the regional administrations of the Ministry of Justice of Bizerte, Beja and Tunis to meet in compliance with health rules and to be trained in administrative and financial...
The Working Group on Evaluation of judicial systems meets to prepare the data collection and quality control of the 2022 cycle (2020 data)
The 40th meeting of the CEPEJ Working Group on evaluation of judicial systems (CEPEJ-GT-EVAL) started on 7 April 2021 in order to prepare the 15th plenary meeting of the national correspondents which takes place on 8 April 2021. The 2nd day of the meeting will be held on 9 April 2021 in order to...
Launch of the 2022 cycle (2020 data) of the CEPEJ evaluation of the functioning of judicial systems
The 15th meeting of CEPEJ national correspondents, in charge of providing data for the evaluation exercise of judicial systems, is taking place online on 8 April 2021. This meeting, organised shortly after the opening of the CEPEJ-COLLECT data collection system for the 2022 evaluation cycle of...
CEPEJ Newsletter: Projects for 2021
The CEPEJ has just published its 19th newsletter. It includes the latest publications, the tools under development within the working groups on the evaluation of judicial systems, quality of justice, artificial intelligence and cyberjustice as well as the management of judicial timeframes. There...
Lessons learned from the Covid-19 health crisis and innovative working methods in judicial institutions
In the framework of the joint programme co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe entitled "Regional Support to Reinforce Human rights, Rule of Law and Democracy in the Southern Mediterranean" (South Programme IV), the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ)...
Crystal Scales of Justice Prize: deadline 31 March 2021
The 11th edition of the Crystal Scales of Justice Prize has been launched on 11th January 2021. The deadline to submit the applications is 31 March 2021. The aim of this Prize is to identify and highlight innovative practices in the organisation of courts and procedures and the functioning of...
CEPEJ refines its tools on time management and case management, key elements of efficient justice
The CEPEJ SATURN Working Group on judicial time management is currently completing its reflection on the role of parties and practitioners in preventing delays in judicial proceedings: it is revising its guidelines on judicial time management so that they also cover court-appointed judicial...
Digital study visit to Estonia by the Maltese justice sector as inspiration for Malta’s first digital justice strategy
A group composed of representatives of the Ministry for Justice, Equality and Governance of Malta, civil servants, judges, court managers, judicial trainers, court staff, and other justice sector stakeholders are participating in a virtual study visit to the Estonian Ministry of Justice on 23 and...
Improving the enforcement system in Azerbaijan
The CEPEJ has developed two important documents in the framework of its project to support the improvement of the enforcement system in Azerbaijan. The documents were drafted by the CEPEJ experts Mr. Mathieu Chardon and Mr. Jos Uitdehaag, based on the results of online assessments with national...
Round table on “How to reduce the length of the proceedings in Egyptian administrative courts and good practices from European countries”
An online round table for judges of the Egyptian Council of State on “How to reduce the length of the proceedings in Egyptian administrative courts and good practices from European countries” is organised by the CEPEJ on 9 March 2021. The implementation of the CEPEJ SATURN guidelines for judicial...
Preparation of guidelines for videoconferencing in judicial proceedings as a priority for the new working group of the CEPEJ on artificial intelligence and Cyberjustice
The Working Group on artificial intelligence and cyberjustice of the CEPEJ (CEPEJ-CYBERJUST) will discuss the use of videoconferencing in judicial proceedings during its meeting on 11 and 12 March 2021. Guidelines on videoconferencing are being prepared as a direct answer to the request of the...
Using CEPEJ tools in taking decisions on budgeting and distributing resources among Moldovan courts based on objective data
On 25 February 2021, a seminar on the use of CEPEJ tools in taking decisions with regard to distribution of resources in courts has been organised in a videoconference format. European experts familiarised the participants with methods on applying Key Performance Indicators and statistical data...
Building capacities on judicial communication in the Republic of Moldova
On 19 February 2021, the CEPEJ organised an online training session on court communication for more than 40 justice professionals, including judges, court presidents, as well as representatives of the Superior Council of Magistrates and the Ministry of Justice. The participants had the...
Steering Group meeting of the European Union / Council of Europe joint Project in the Republic of Moldova
On 25 February 2021 the third meeting of the Steering Group of the European Union / Council of Europe joint Project “Support to further strengthening the efficiency and quality of the judicial system in the Republic of Moldova”, co-funded by the European Commission and the Council of Europe and...
CEPEJ supports the setting up of a regular and sustainable assessment of the justice system in Kosovo*
In 2021, for the second consecutive year, the Kosovo Ministry of Justice will be leading, with CEPEJ support, the assessment of the justice system continuing to move towards the objective of setting up a regular and sustainable assessment of the functioning of the justice system in Kosovo. In...
Coordination meeting with the representatives of the Presidency of the Public Prosecutor's Office of the Kingdom of Morocco on the monitoring of the performance of public prosecutors' offices
Within the framework of the project "Improving the functioning of justice in Morocco on the basis of the tools developed by the CEPEJ - phase II", conducted since November 2020, CEPEJ experts and representatives of the Presidency of the Public Prosecutor's Office will meet by videoconference on...
Mediation training seminar for Tunisian lawyers
The CEPEJ, with the support of the European Union and in partnership with the Tunisian National Bar Association (ONAT) organised on 19 February 2021 a training seminar by videoconference on "The lawyer and mediation". The seminar was opened by Mr Hatem MZIOU, Secretary General of the Tunisian...
The distance trial in Tunisia: state of play and lessons learned
Consecrated by Decree-Law No. 2020-12 of 27 April 2020 supplementing the Code of Criminal Procedure, several remote criminal trials have recently been organised in Tunisia. In order to take stock of the situation, draw the first lessons and reflect on these recent experiences, a round table was...
CEPEJ meeting on the development and management of cyberjustice in the Latvian judicial system
On 3 March 2021, the CEPEJ will organise a webinar on the development of a cyberjustice strategic framework for the Latvian judicial system and way for improving the existing Central Information System. Discussions will focus on the modalities of implementation and the proper involvement of...
Roundtable on the Judicial Map reform in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice of the Slovak Republic
On 23 and 24 February 2021, CEPEJ will organise of a roundtable on the Judicial Map reform in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice of the Slovak Republic. The representatives of the Ministry of Justice, of the Judicial Council, of the Supreme Administrative Court, of affected Regional courts,...
Workshop on the implementation of timeframes and the importance of performance indicators and Court Statistics in Latvia
On 25 February 2021, the CEPEJ will organise a workshop on the implementation of timeframes of proceedings in courts and the importance of performance indicators and court statistics in Latvia, in cooperation with the Latvian Ministry of Justice, with the participation of the Chief Justice of the...
Information-gathering meetings with the pilot public prosecutor's offices of the Court of Appeal of Safi and the Court of First Instance of Khémisset in the Kingdom of Morocco
Within the framework of the project "Improviing the functioning of justice in Morocco on the basis of the tools developed by the CEPEJ - phase II", which started in November 2020, the CEPEJ will organise two online working meetings in partnership with the Presidency of the Public Prosecutor's...
Supporting the High Judicial Council for a unified methodology for the collection of judicial data in Albania
CEPEJ experts are conducting a series of trainings on the new methodology for the collection of the judicial data as part of its support to the High Judicial Council (HJC). In accordance with the Law No. 115/2016 on Governance Institutions of the Justice System, HJC adopted a Guide on the...
Development of a new tool for judicial statistics in the Republic of Moldova
The Working Group on publishing national judicial statistics conducts regular meetings to propose a concept of a national tool called “JUSTAT”, aimed at publishing relevant data and performance indicators of the judicial system in the Republic of Moldova. The concept is based on the example of...
Dashboard Western Balkans: Workshop on statistical data concerning external donor’s fund, legal aid and Alternative Dispute Resolution in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia
The CEPEJ organised on 18th February an online workshop for the representatives of the six beneficiaries of the Action "Dashboard Western Balkans" (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia). Representatives of the European Union also attended. Participants...
Breaking judges’ isolation during COVID19 pandemic on the agenda of the CEPEJ in Latvia and Georgia
The CEPEJ Guidelines to improve the judge's skills and competences, strengthen knowledge sharing and collaboration, and move beyond a culture of judicial isolation provide concrete tools to remedy to judicial isolation which could have been worsened with the health crisis. The CEPEJ activities in...
Development and presentation of the Action plan for implementation of the Road map on dissemination of CEPEJ tools in all courts of Azerbaijan
From 8 to 10 February 2021, during an online workshop organised by the CEPEJ, 30 representatives from the Ministry of Justice, Judicial Legal Council, Justice Academy, Supreme Court and pilot courts of the previous phase of the project discussed the activities and the set of organisational...
Round table on “Improving the management of dashboards at Egyptian administrative courts”
On 11 February 2021, the CEPEJ organised an online round table for judges of the Egyptian Council of State on “Improving the management of dashboards at Egyptian administrative courts” The round table was opened by the President of the Egyptian Council of State, in the presence of representatives...
The tool on the development of dashboards for court management is at the centre of the work of the CEPEJ Working Group on judicial time management (CEPEJ-SATURN)
The CEPEJ Working Group on judicial time management (CEPEJ-SATURN) will hold its 29th meeting on 18 February 2021. In the framework of its work on the role of parties and practitioners in preventing delays in court proceedings, it will examine the draft guidelines for lawyers, for judicial...
Certification of AI tools and the centrality of the user in legal proceedings among the important topics of the next meeting of the CEPEJ Working Group on quality of justice
At its next meeting on 15 and 16 February 2021, the CEPEJ Working Group on Quality of Justice (GT-QUAL) should take position on possible actions to implement the European Ethical Charter on the use of artificial intelligence in judicial systems and their environment, adopted in 2018. In...
Strengthening the access to justice for vulnerable groups in the Republic of Moldova
On 20 January 2021, representatives of key justice sector actors, international partners and NGOs actively engaged in promoting the protection of vulnerable categories of people met in an online event to discuss the expert Report on strengthening the access to justice for vulnerable groups in the...
Improving judicial communication to increase the public confidence in the judicial system of the Republic of Moldova
The assessment Report of the Communication Strategy of the Superior Council of Magistracy in the Republic of Moldova and the Guidelines on the relations between the judiciary and the media were presented and discussed during a workshop on 20 January 2021, with the involvement of the justice...
Launch of the Council of Europe's "Crystal Scales of Justice Prize" for innovative practices contributing to the efficiency and quality of justice
The Council of Europe is organising the 11th edition of the Crystal Scales of Justice Prize. The aim of this Prize is to identify and highlight innovative practices in the organisation of courts and procedures and the functioning of the judicial system in general. These are recently implemented...
Meetings to launch the cooperation project between the CEPEJ and the Kingdom of Morocco
Within the framework of the project " Improving the functioning of justice in Morocco based on the tools developed by the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) – phase II", conducted since November 2020 within the framework of the Neighborhood Partnership of the Council of...
Conference on the internal management of the general inspectorate of the Ministry of justice of Tunisia at the time of covid 19: comparative experiences
The CEPEJ, in partnership with the Tunisian Ministry of Justice organised on 17 December 2020, a videoconference on the following topic: "The internal management of the General Inspectorate at the time of COVID 19: exchanges and comparative experiences". The aim of this videoconference was to...
Closing meeting of the “One Stop Advice Service” pilot project on legal aid in Latvia
During this pilot project, during 8 weeks from 12 October to 4 December, the CEPEJ, in collaboration with the Latvian Ministry of justice, Legal Aid Administration and the Directorate General for Structural Reform of the European Commission, professionals offered free legal aid held to 610...
Artificial intelligence and cyberjustice at the heart of the discussions of the CEPEJ plenary meeting
During its 34th plenary meeting, on December 8, the CEPEJ adopted a feasibility study on the possible establishment of a certification mechanism for artificial intelligence tools and services on the basis of the CEPEJ Charter on the use of artificial intelligence in judicial systems and their...
The evaluation report of judicial systems, artificial intelligence and cyberjustice at the heart of the discussions of the next CEPEJ plenary meeting
The CEPEJ will hold its 34th online plenary meeting on 8 December 2020. On this occasion, the various options that can be envisaged within the framework of the setting up of a certification mechanism for artificial intelligence tools and services on the basis of the CEPEJ Charter will be...
Know-How guidelines on data collection and analysis to assess the functioning of the judicial system in Kosovo*
On 1 December 2020, an online consultation has been organised with representatives of the Kosovo Prosecutorial Council (KPC) and the Special Advisor of the EU Office in Kosovo to discuss the questions of the CEPEJ Evaluation Scheme related to the prosecutorial caseload, in order to improve the...
CEPEJ evaluation Report on judicial systems, Edition 2020 : Online presentation of data concerning Georgia
On 17 November 2020, the CEPEJ presented the main trends and data concerning Georgia, extracted from the CEPEJ Evaluation Report on judicial systems. The event, in which Ms Nino Bakakuri, judge at the Supreme Court and CEPEJ member for Georgia, participated, was addressed to Georgian judges,...
Preparation of the 2020-2022 CEPEJ evaluation cycle
The 39th meeting of the CEPEJ Working Group on evaluation of judicial systems (CEPEJ-GT-EVAL) took place on 19 and 20 November 2020 by videoconference. The Group took stock of the recent publication of the 8th edition of the Evaluation Report of European judicial systems based on 2018 data. This...
Pilot testing conducted at the Basic Court of Pristina to issue court summonses electronically to lawyers, Kosovo*
On 16 November, a team composed of a judge in the civil division at the Basic Court of Pristina, a legal secretary, and a trainer from the Case Management Information System project, conducted a pilot test to confirm that court summonses can be generated from the case management system and sent...
The CEPEJ's 2020 evaluation report of judicial systems presented at the Conference of Ministers of Justice
On the occasion of the online conference of Ministers of Justice on 9 November 2020, the President of the CEPEJ, Mr Ramin Gurbanov, officially presented the CEPEJ evaluation report on judicial systems. He recalled in particular that the CEPEJ report, published on 22nd October 2020, is a reference...
Increasing capacities of Latvian judges and court staff to implement modern court and case management
The Latvian Judicial Training Centre has been awarded a grant for the elaboration and implementation of trainings on court and case management based on CEPEJ methodology and tools. The duration of the grant will last four months, until end of February 2021. For that purpose, three training...
Workshop on case-weighting in judicial systems for Latvia
On 6 November 2020, during an online workshop, CEPEJ will provide expert advice and support to the Latvian Working Group for Court Efficiency of the Ministry of Justice in regard to the preparation of a Latvian case-weighting solution. It will take into account the recently adopted CEPEJ Study...
The CEPEJ report containing the figures on the efficiency of the functioning of judicial systems in Europe has been published
The CEPEJ has just published its 8th report "European judicial systems - CEPEJ Evaluation Report – 2020 Evaluation cycle (2018 data)". This biennial report highlights some trends concerning judicial systems at European level and beyond. It contains quantified, commented and analysed data on the...
Cooperation, evaluation, mediation, time, quality and innovation were the priorities of the CEPEJ in 2019
In 2019, in accordance with its terms of reference, the CEPEJ continued its action in the field of the improvement of the functioning of European judicial systems, thanks in particular to the development of concrete tools for legal professionals elaborated by its working groups on the evaluation...
Dashboard for the Western Balkans: Meetings with the beneficiaries to determine future capacity building activities in collecting statistical data
After assessing the capacity of beneficiaries to collect, process and transfer judicial statistics on the basis of a first cycle 2019-2020, bilateral videoconference meetings are organised throughout the month of November between the CEPEJ and the beneficiaries of the action (Albania, Bosnia and...
Tools and guidelines under development by the SATURN Working Group on judicial timeframes
The SATURN Working Group on Judicial Time Management will hold its 28th meeting on 9 and 10th November 2020 by videoconference, with a full agenda. It will indeed examine a tool on the development of dashboards for court management and will discuss the opportunity to create a new tool to better...
Online celebration of the European Day of Justice around October 25 to celebrate the European Day of Justice
On 25 October each year, on the European Day of Justice, events for court users, students and legal professionals are organised throughout Europe to bring justice closer to its users, to inform them about their rights and to promote the work of the Council of Europe and the European Commission....
Conference on the lawyer and judicial time: a look at the Tunisian and European experiences
Within the framework of the joint European Union/Council of Europe program aiming at improving the functioning, performance and access to justice in Tunisia (AP-JUST) co-financed by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the latter, the CEPEJ in cooperation with the...
Online training session on court communication in Latvia
On 23rd October 2020, the CEPEJ will organise an online training session on court communication in Latvia in cooperation with the national Court Administration. On this occasion, the CEPEJ Guide on communication with the media and the public for courts and prosecution authorities will be...
Dashboard Western Balkans: second Steering Committee
The second meeting of the Steering committee of the project "Dashboard Western Balkans: Towards a better evaluation of the results of judiciary reform efforts in the Western Balkans" took place on 16 October 2020 via videoconference. It brought together representatives of the European Commission...
First online meeting of the Committee for the Mediation Pilot Project in Latvia
On 16 October CEPEJ, together with the Directorate General for Structural Reform of the European Commission, the Ministry of Justice of Latvia, the Council of Certified Mediators, and representatives of judges, lawyers, court staff, and mediators, held their first Mediation Pilot Project...
Launch of the pilot project "One Stop legal aid Advice Service" in Latvia
On 12 October, the pilot project to strengthen free primary legal aid in Latvia will start for a two months period. The national councillors, who have previously be trained by CEPEJ experts to the concept of the "One-stop legal aid advice desk"will be present several days a week in Riga and...
The CEPEJ heard by the French National Assembly concerning its statistics on justice budgets
Within the framework of the setting of the of the budget law for 2021 devoted to justice and access to law, the Secretariat of the CEPEJ was heard by the rapporteur on behalf of the Law Commission of the National Assembly for an opinion on the budget 2021 relating to justice and access to law, on...
Steering Committee meetings via videoconference for two CEPEJ Projects with Malta
On 2nd October 2020 took place a joint steering Committee videoconference of the Projects “Supporting the efficiency of Justice in Malta” which will last until December 2020 and “Establishing a Digital Strategy for the Maltese Justice Sector” which started in May 2020 and will end in May 2021....
Workshop on how to improve the relations between the judiciary and the media in Georgia
On 7 October 2020, a webinar will be organised for the Georgian judicial professionals on media and communication skills with focus on social and new media. This workshop will be based on the Guide on communication with the media and the public for courts and prosecuting authorities developed by...
Justice at the service of citizens, students and legal professionals around 25th October 2020
On 25 October each year, on the European Day of Justice, events for European citizens, students and legal professionals are organised throughout Europe to bring justice closer to citizens, to inform them about their rights and to promote the work of the Council of Europe and the European...
2nd meeting of the new CEPEJ Working Group on Cyberjustice and Artificial Intelligence (CEPEJ-CYBERJUST)
The CEPEJ Working Group CYBERJUST decided, during its 2nd meeting on 24 and 25 September 2020 by videoconference, which concrete tools should be developed in the short or medium term among the issues as varied as the digitisation of courts, procedures and files, the management of online...
The CEPEJ Working Group on quality of justice pursues its work
The 28th meeting of the Working Group on Quality of Justice (GT-QUAL) took place by videoconference on 24 and 25 September 2020. In the framework of the implementation of the European Ethical Charter on the use of artificial intelligence in judicial systems and their environment, the Group...
The Justice Academy in Kosovo* gets started with online survey on court efficiency
On 17 September 2020, the heads of the initial and continuous training programmes at the Kosovo Justice Academy worked with the KoSEJ2 Action team on creating their first survey on court efficiency for judges, court presidents, and court staff. The survey will be deployed via email, in accordance...
Second Steering Committee meeting – Programme “Continued support to a well performing Slovak judiciary”
Cooperation programme in Slovakia: The Second Steering Committee meeting of the joint Council of Europe and European Union project “Continued support to a well performing Slovak judiciary” took place on 8 September 2020, via videoconference, in the presence of the newly appointed Minister of...
Issuing court summonses electronically in Kosovo*
On 3 September 2020, the CEPEJ international expert Mr Thierry Ghera, President of the Court of Strasbourg, presented to Mr Skender Çocaj, Chairman of the Kosovo Judicial Council, the benefits of issuing court summons electronically. Mr Ghera presented the French system in which all documents in...
Road map on dissemination of CEPEJ efficiency and quality measurement tools in all courts of Azerbaijan
The European Union and the Council of Europe continue to work in partnership with the Republic of Azerbaijan to improve efficiency of the Azerbaijani judiciary. In this regard, the Council of Europe has developed a Road map on dissemination of CEPEJ efficiency and quality measurement tools in all...
Steering the project "Support for further strengthening the efficiency and quality of the judiciary in the Republic of Moldova"
On 13 August 2020 was carried out the second meeting of the Steering Group of the project "Support for further strengthening the efficiency and quality of the judiciary in the Republic of Moldova", which is part of the Partnership of the Council of Europe and the European Union for Good...
Discussing ways to improve the enforcement of court decisions in civil and administrative matters in the Republic of Moldova
On 13 August 2020 CEPEJ moderated an on-line workshop in order to discuss the ways to further improve the enforcement of court decisions in civil and administrative matters in the Republic of Moldova and to define priorities and specific activities by which the CEPEJ may support the national...
Efforts are pursued to improve the efficiency of courts and the quality of judicial services in the Republic of Moldova
On 12 August 2020 a team of CEPEJ experts met in a videoconference members of the judicial administration of the Republic of Moldova to discuss new measures with a view to improving the efficiency of courts and the quality of judicial services through further dissemination of CEPEJ-recommended...
Supporting the reflections on a case-weighting system in Latvia
On 06 August 2020, the judicial case-weighting model set up in the Republic of Moldova was presented and discussed with Latvian counterparts. The event took place in the format of a videoconference. Representatives from the Ministry of Justice, Court Administration and judges from CEPEJ pilot...
Press conference on the development of a digital justice strategy for Malta
On 17 July, Dr Edward Żammit Lewis, Maltese Minister of Justice, Equality and Governance, held a press conference on the development of a digital justice strategy for Malta. The Minister stressed the need to increase the efficiency of the Maltese judicial system, which should be achieved in...
Internal organisation of the General Inspectorate: Tunisia is share good practices with European counterparts
In the framework of the programme "Improving the functioning, performance and access to justice in Tunisia" (AP-JUST), the Council of Europe with the support of the European Union and in partnership with the Tunisian Ministry of Justice organised on 13 and 16 July 2020, two videoconferences on...