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Transparency International Georgia, the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association, the Institute for the Development and Freedom of Information, the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy, Georgian Lawyers for an Independent Profession, and the Human Rights Center respond to the first session of the 10th Conference of Judges held on June 9, 2013.

Due to the recent legislative changes in the Law on Common Courts the 10th Conference of Judges holds particular importance. The goal of the Conference is to strengthen the self-governance of judges, and to re-staff the principal bodies within the judicial system.

It is important to note that the Conference of Judges was well organized. The transparency of the Conference, in accordance with the recommendations of NGOs, allowed observers and representatives of mass media to monitor the session without any obstacles.

As we observed, judges met no obstacles to voicing their opinions, conducting the discussion, and naming specific issues during the process. Considering the circumstances, this Conference was particularly distinctive because of the active engagement of the judges. And judges had an opportunity to vote on the main issues.

Certain topics created dissent among the judges, including the agenda of the Conference, and the ability to pose questions to the candidates. Based on our observations, due to a lack of explanation to the participants regarding the powers of the Conference as a self-governing body, the majority of the attendees refrained from supporting the changes which would allow the Conference of Judges to set the agenda of the Conference. Additionally, it is important to note that the Conference rejected its power to pose questions to the candidates for the membership of the High Council of Justice based on majority voting. Therefore, the judges who wished to pose questions to the candidates for the membership of the High Council of Justice did not get a chance to use their rights. Even though the Conference had a formal and legal right to make such a decision, it would be more productive to allow the judges to pose questions to the candidates for the purpose of collecting information regarding the views and goals of the candidates. The course of the discussion showed that the ambiguity of certain legislative norms allowed the judges to provide varied interpretations, and created dissent among the attendees, which increased the duration of the process. Therefore, it is important to specify certain legal norms in order to avoid the possibility of the existence of alternative  interpretations in future. In this regard, it is essential to change the legislative norms which give the board and the heads of chambers privileges during the election of the High Council of Justice.

Despite the above-mentioned issues, the first session of the 10th Conference was a step forward in continuing judicial reform and towards providing a necessary degree of independence. Nevertheless, it is essential that every judge fully understands their new legal powers and the responsibility they have with regards to establishing an unbiased justice system. The new legal regulations provide judges with an opportunity to work towards creating an unbiased justice system. Therefore, it is vital that judges use their legal powers more actively for strengthening the justice system, and make more resolute decisions at the second session of the 10th Conference. Also, it is important that the Parliament of Georgia contributes to the reform of the judicial governance through electing independent and respected members of the High Council of Justice.