The representatives of the CEPEJ five pilot courts from Bosnia and Herzegovina, basic courts in Sokolac, Trebinje and Brčko District, and the municipal courts in Livno and Cazin, participated in a study visit to the judicial institutions in France and to the Council of Europe during 17-19 June 2025.

The main objective of the visit was for the court presidents, judges and court secretaries to get familiar with the good French and European practices of court management, as well as with tools and initiatives aimed at enhancing quality of justice and public trust.

The delegation had the opportunity to discover the work of the Strasbourg’s Maison de la Justice et du Droit, a special decentralized structure aimed at ensuring a local judicial presence, guaranteeing citizens access to the law and promoting alternative methods of resolving everyday disputes.

The exchanges with the Strasbourg first instance court were focused on good practices of court management, evaluation of the work of judges, available tools to ensure communication between the court and the lawyers, as well as with the public.

The visit to the Court of Appeal of Versailles allowed to exchange on practicalities of court management and budgeting, organisation of hearings and awareness-raising initiatives of the court targeting issues of domestic violence.

Finally, the representatives of the pilot courts were able to get familiar with the latest developments in the work of the CEPEJ working groups and to discuss their most recent tools. Additionally, an exchange with the judge of the European Court for Human Rights in respect of Bosnia and Herzegovina was organised to discuss the work of the court, cases and judgements delivered and their execution by Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This activity was organised by the BiHSEJ action “Strengthening the Efficiency and Quality of Justice in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiHSEJ)” in the framework of the European Union/Council of Europe joint programme Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye (Horizontal Facility III), co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe.