On 26-27 of May the high-level conference “On European Standards and the Role of Court Presidents” took place in Zaporizhya, Ukraine, organized jointly by the Council of Europe project “Support to the Implementation of the Judicial Reform in Ukraine”, Zaporizhya Regional Court of Appeal and Zaporizhya Regional Association of Judges.

The event was attended by heads and representatives of the High Specialized Court of Ukraine on Civil and Criminal Matters, the High Administrative Court of Ukraine, the High Commercial Court of Ukraine, the Council of Judges of Ukraine, the appellate courts of general, administrative and commercial jurisdictions, the Mayor of Zaporizhya, the Heads of Zaporizhya Regional Council and of the Zaporizya Regional State Administration, as well as representatives of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, the Presidential Administration of Ukraine, representatives of international organisations and experts of the Council of Europe.

The participants of the conference exchanged opinions on functions and powers of court presidents and the efficiency of judiciary, discussed standards of the Council of Europe and international practices in this regard. The proposals and recommendations, finalized as the result of the discussion, will be transmitted to the Consultative Council of European Judges which currently prepares its 19th Opinion on the role of court presidents in the framework of efficiency of justice.

The second day of the event was dedicated to the questions of effective networking among court presidents and the efficiency of courts’ functioning in the context of conflict in Ukraine.

Among other things, the Council of Europe Plan of Action on Strengthening Judicial Independence and Impartiality (adopted on 13th of April 2016 at the 1253rd meeting of the Committee of Ministers of Council of Europe in Sofia, Bulgaria) was presented at the conference.

The Council of Europe project “Support to the Implementation of the Judicial Reform in Ukraine” is funded by a contribution from the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and is a follow-up to previous efforts of the Council of Europe as regards the reform of judiciary. It aims at further approximation of Ukrainian system of judiciary to the standards and recommendations of the Council of Europe.