An efficient judiciary is the basis of the rule of law, participants concluded at the Annual Meeting of Judges of the Republic of Serbia in Vrnjacka Banja.

The event was also attended by Deputy Head of the Delegation of the European Union Mateja Norcic Stamcar, who noted that judicial reforms are not only a requirement of the EU but also the basis of governance and economic reforms that are essential for the prosperity of Serbia and the well-being of its citizens.

“Official figures show that while the number of judges has fallen in 2018, Serbian courts have been able to resolve an equal number of cases. Moreover, comparing the duration of the process between 2017 and 2018 shows the average duration of the process has decreased. On behalf of the European Union.
“We support Serbia’s judicial efforts in a very concrete way. In the area of ​​efficiency alone, the European Union is currently investing more than € 22 million, in cooperation with the Ministry of Justice and the courts,” Norcic Stamcar notes.

“However, despite these encouraging advances, much remains to be done. The key issues to be addressed in the coming period are to reduce the archive of outdated cases; to improve the legal framework, especially in terms of mediation and harmonization of competences,” added the Deputy Head of the EU Delegation.

Photo: Ministry of Justice

Justice Minister Nela Kuburovic and Acting Minister of Justice President of the Supreme Court of Cassation, Dragomir Milojevic, also signed the Instruction for the Implementation of the Law on Enforcement and Security during the event, which will be implemented from January 1, 2020.

Minister Kuburović said that since the beginning of implementation of the Law in 2016, one and a half million old enforcement cases have been resolved, and that she believes that new changes to that law will contribute to solving old, bargain cases.

“Our goal is to deal with old cases appropriately. This means that claims up to RSD 2,000 and in which no enforcement action has been undertaken in the last six months will be automatically suspended. Our goal is to act in a uniform manner and I hope that through this Instruction we will be able to solve it, “Kuburovic said.

The Minister of Justice expressed her belief that from 1 January everything will be ready to start implementing the Law on Enforcement and Security and that 2020 will be the key to solving the problem of cases older than 10 years.

Milojevic points out that the signing of the Instruction is a continuation of inter-institutional cooperation between the Supreme Court of Cassation, the High Judicial Council and the Ministry of Justice.

“This is another opportunity for cooperation in a joint systemic effort to achieve greater court efficiency, reduce the number of pending old cases and shorten the duration of proceedings is recognized,” said v.f. the President of the Supreme Court of Cassation.

The drafting and issuing of the Implementation of the Law on Amendments to the Law on Enforcement and Security were made possible with the support of the EU for Serbia – Support to the Supreme Court of Cassation project and the USAID Rule of Law project.