With the support of the joint EU/CoE Project "Support for the Implementation of Judicial Reform in Serbia", the Working Group of the High Prosecutorial Council held a second meeting in Belgrade to draft the new Ethics Code of the public prosecutors and Guidelines for its implementation. The working group includes members of the High Prosecutorial Council, public prosecutors from all four appellate public prosecutors’ offices, representatives of two associations of public prosecutors and civil society representative.

The aim of the meeting was to review once again the Draft Ethics Code and finalise the text for adoption. The Working Group also had a task to develop the final proposal of the Guidelines for its implementation, which specify in more detail the ethical principles defined in the Ethics Code. The initial Draft Guidelines for implementation of the Ethics Code was developed by local Council of Europe expert, based on the current Guidelines, Draft Code of Ethics and the new prosecutorial laws.

These two bylaws are of particular importance as they address some of the key rights and duties of public prosecutors arising from the new prosecutorial laws, such as the freedom of expression. The Ethics Code and the Guidelines need to be aligned with European standards promoting the key ethical values to strengthen the autonomy of the prosecutors. The joint EU/CoE project "Support for the Implementation of Judicial Reform in Serbia" continues to support the High Prosecutorial Council in the process of drafting implementation bylaws to align with the new legal framework.