Description
The overall objective of the project is to increase the capacity of the judiciary to better implement the New legislative Codes (Civil Code, Civil Procedure Code, Criminal Code, Criminal Procedure Code) and to face other legislative and institutional challenges. The training component envisages to improve the training capacity of the National Institute of Magistracy (NIM) as well as for increasing the professional skills of magistrates and of other law professionals (clerks, judicial inspectors, lawyers) on various legal matters, especially unification of the jurisprudence, provisions on the New Judicial Codes, as well as other topics such as, ECHR jurisprudence, court management, integrity, case and time management and mediation. Through the endowment component, IT&C equipment will be purchased for the following institutions: Superior Council of Magistracy, NIM, National School of Clerks, Judicial Inspection; forensic investigation equipment for the Public Ministry; and office equipment for the courts. The role of the Donor Project Partners (Norwegian Court Administration and Council of Europe) in the implementation of the project is to provide experts, sharing of best practices, as well as overall advice on its implementation.
Summary of project results
The project aimed at strengthening the capacity of the Romanian judiciary to implement the new codes and to cope with the new legislative and institutional changes, by developing the training capacity at the NIM level, providing professional training in several fields, considered as priority (civil and civil procedure law, criminal and criminal procedure law, ECHR jurisprudence, judicial management, judicial ethics and professional deontology, case and time management and the management of the clerk’s activity, fiscal law, consumer’s rights, insolvency, and drafting of judgments), as well as the acquisition of IT equipment and technical equipment for strengthening the institutional capacity of certain institutions within the judiciary. The consolidation of the network of trainers, the improvement of the training curricula and the trainings organised and held by the promoter in cooperation with its national and donor project partners, contributed to the strengthening of the knowledge of a wide range of professionals (judges, prosecutors, court and prosecutor office clerks, judicial inspectors, mediators, lawyers etc.) in the key areas mentioned above. A great variety of training activities were implemented (e.g., workshops, seminars, sessions of training of trainers, conferences, summer schools etc.), ensuring thus a wide impact of the project (331 training activities, involving more than 8.800 participants - judges, prosecutors, clerks, lawyers, and other relevant professional categories). Also, 4 guides were elaborated (1 on judicial ethics and 3 practical guides for clerks). Furthermore, the institutional capacity of the following judicial institutions was consolidated by their endowment with technical equipment (computers, printers, servers, forensic scene works systems, mobile IT investigation hardware, etc.): courts, the Superior Council of Magistracy, the National Institute of Magistracy, the National School of Clerks, the Prosecutor’s Office Attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice, and the Judicial Inspection.
Summary of bilateral results
As envisaged, the framework offered by the project represented a premise and an opportunity for ensuring the transfer by the donor project partners of knowledge, experience and best practice adapted to the peculiarities of the Romanian justice system, and for the shared achievement of the project's results. The project envisaged the involvement of the experts appointed by the donor project partners, and thus specific activities were carried out in cooperation with them (e.g., conferences on the new codes, seminars on techniques for drafting of judgments etc). Furthermore, there were organised steering committees with the participation of the project promoters and of the donor project partners, in Bucharest, Oslo/ Trondheim and Strasbourg. The meetings tackled specific issues concerning the organisation and implementation of the project, including its continuation and use of savings, bilateral relations, and other administrative issues. Thus, the partnership contributed to achieving one of the major overall objective of the MFN 2009-2014, strengthening the bilateral relations between Norway as donor state and Romania as beneficiary country in the judiciary field.