On 18 February 2021 the Kick-off online meeting for the new European Union/Council of Europe Joint Project for Cyprus “Enhancing the capacity of the justice system by an effective implementation of the reform recommendations and processes” took place. The improvement of courts’ management and administration and case-management by court registries is an important element of the on-going complex reform of the court system in Cyprus. The Supreme Court of the Republic of Cyprus with the support of the Directorate General for Structural Reform Support (DG REFORM) of the European Commission (EC) and the Council of Europe is undertaking an ambitious reform process to improve the court system. This reform process is focusing on four areas: court operations, judicial training, e-Justice and the reform of the Rules of Civil Procedure (RCP).

Under the new Project, the Council of Europe will provide technical assistance to bring Cypriot courts at pace with modern case management and administration methods which would further contribute to the strengthening of the justice system, providing uninterrupted and prompt access to justice.

The President of the Supreme Court, Mrs Persefoni Panayi, welcomed the inauguration of the Project concerning the autonomy of the administration of the Courts and the restructuring of the Registries as a necessary step to follow and supplement the introduction of the new Rules of Civil Procedure and e-Justice system. The importance of the establishment of a specialised independent body which will take over the management, administration and support of the Courts, was highlighted by the Ministry of Justice. Furthermore, the Minister of Finance, Mr Constantinos Petrides, stressed the connection between the reform of the justice system and the economic resilience of the State and referred to the importance of the modernisation of the justice system for the development of a more competitive economy.

Representativee of DG REFORM of the EC, Mr. Sébastien Renaud presented the Reforms in the Judicial Sector and the goals along with the outputs of the New Project. The Director General of Human Rights and Rule of Law of the Council of Europe, Mr Christos Giakoumopoulos,  referred to the four main objectives of the Project and underlined the ways with which the Council of Europe can support and contribute to the justice reform. Lastly, the Irish experience of a successful modernisation of the Courts’ Service was presented by the CEO of the Courts Service of Ireland, Mrs Angela Denning, who also introduced the benefits as well as the challenges of the such reform processes.