Annual Meeting En Banc Voices Concern about Independent Judiciary
The "court en banc" - the annual meeting of all of Estonia's judges - is taking place today at the Kumu art museum. Legislative and executive encroachment on an independent judiciary has emerged as a srong theme in the proceedings.
The assembly has heard speeches by Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Mart Rask and Minister of Justice Hanno Pevkur and will discuss issues concerning courts and the work of judges in the country, reported ETV.
The meeting will also elect members to serve in various committees and councils.
Märt Rask, whose term as chief justice will end in September, said that Parliament does not want to develop an independent judiciary.
“One should not be surprised if new provisions appear in the Courts Act that have not been discussed with judges and that compel judges to be evaluated regularly, due to advice from the GRECO report,” added Rask.
GRECO or the Group of States against corruption, an EU institution, published a report exactly one month ago. In the report, the body recommends introducing such a system.
The full report is available here.
“The previous Minister of Justice [Kristen Michal] told the Chief Justice that the judiciary belongs under his jurisdiction,” said Rask and added that although the Cabinet is planning reforms to the Courts Act - the deadline is set at 2016 - the 2015 elections might postpone it.
“[...] Parliament a critical mass of decision-makers who think that the judiciary should be separate from the executive arm of the state. I dare to draw an even more extensive conclusion that there are currently no political forces in Parliament who care to accept the courts as a third tier of state power and who accept their right to reform themselves,” added the Chief Justice.
Minister of Justice Hanno Pevkur, who only took office at the end of 2012, said that the court system has expressed a wish to create a standard of quality for court management, administration and the conducting of judicial proceedings. This standard will assure the best quality of decisions, a good speed of procedures and satisfaction of all parties, said the minister.
Pevkur also talked about the need for society to better understand courts and court decisions.
“[...] Everyone must honor decisions made by courts and remember that no one can be labeled guilty before the court has reached a verdict,” Pevkur added.
The minister said that in 2012, the number of civil cases fell by 11 percent, while numbers of criminal cases and administrative matters also dropped - by 14 and 15 percent, respectively.
Pevkur added that 3.6 million euros more is available for the court system to streamline court proceedings and that salaries of judges will increase in July, in some cases by a third.
There are currently 227 judges in Estonia.