On November 13, 2024, the Council of Europe, in collaboration with the European Union Advisory Mission in Ukraine and in partnership with the Supreme Court, organised a roundtable titled "Specialisation of Judges in War Crimes Cases". The event brought together members of Parliament, representatives of the Supreme Court, the High Council of Justice, the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine, the Council of Judges of Ukraine, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the National School of Judges of Ukraine, and the Prosecutors' Training Center of Ukraine.
In his opening remarks, Mr Erlend Falch, the Deputy Head of the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine, noted: "Our aim here is to explore practical ways to further the work of the judiciary in today’s realia – from strengthening judicial specialisation to enhancing training and operational support, particularly for cases of international crimes. Such efforts, supported by both national and international partners, can only bolster the judicial system’s resilience and integrity".
Council of Europe consultants Ms Iva Nikšić, a former criminal court judge in Croatia and an international judge on war crimes within the EU Mission in Kosovo, and Ms Nataliia Marchuk, a Supreme Court judge, also contributed to the discussions and moderated the roundtable.
The roundtable was structured to combine an overview of international experiences with discussions on the opportunities and challenges of implementing judicial specialisation in war crimes cases. This event was one of the steps toward advancing professional dialogue on strengthening the capacity of Ukraine's criminal justice system to ensure justice in cases of war crimes committed in connection with the Russian Federation's war of aggression against Ukraine.
Background:
On November 29, 2023, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine registered draft law No. 10301, which provides for the introduction of judicial specialisation in general jurisdiction courts for criminal proceedings in cases of military criminal offenses, crimes against peace, security of humanity, and international order.
The event was supported within the project "Fostering Human Rights in the Criminal Justice System in Ukraine", which is part of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery, and Reconstruction” for 2023–2026.
