Working group on justice: Draft constitutional amendments on justice are aimed at depoliticization and independence of judicial power

In the framework of the public discussion of draft constitutional amendments on justice, the working group on justice and adjacent legal institutions jointly with the Bar Association of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center presented the results of their work.

In his comment, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration, Secretary of the Constitutional Commission Oleksiy Filatov noted: “Problems of judicial system exist not only at the level of Constitution. But it is a foundation of the system, that’s why the amendments proposed set directions of the movement. The draft amendments to the Constitution are aimed at depoliticization and independence of judicial power, increase of requirements and professional standards for the judicial corps, restriction of judicial immunity up to functional one, optimization of judicial system to ensure individual's right to a fair trial, provision of institutional capacity of prosecution and the system of execution of judgments, as well as ensuring continuous and effective operation of judicial power in transition”.

Dr. Virgilijus Valancius, Team Leader at the EU Project “Support to Justice Sector Reforms in Ukraine” noted that the majority of recommendations of the Venice Commission regarding constitutional amendments had been endorsed by the working group.

The participants of the discussion expressed a series of proposals, inter alia, on the complete restart of the judiciary through the dismissal of all judges. Still, this proposal was not approved, because there are no legal grounds at the constitutional level for its implementation and such practice doesn’t meet the European standards, because it neglects the principle of individual responsibility of a judge.

Although the restart and purification of the judiciary is a key purpose of the judicial reform, means of achieving this goal must meet the European standards.

Mass dismissal of judges without observing the principle of individual responsibility doesn’t meet such standards and will not lead to the intended result given the precedents that have taken place in other Eastern European countries.

Purification of the judicial corps should be held within the procedures of individual assessment. These procedures must be supplemented by the procedures of disciplinary and criminal liability of specific judges in case there is a reason for such liability.

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