The judges of the Albanian Constitutional Court during their visit to the European Court of Human Rights Albanien
In addition to the fundamental guarantee of the right of access to justice, which is also enshrined in Article 46 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, reliable case law by the constitutional courts, based, among other things, on the case law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), is essential for the effective protection of fundamental rights.
Therefore IRZ has recently invited the judges of the Constitutional Court of Albania to a working visit to the ECtHR, funded by the German Federal Foreign Office, which focused on professional exchange with the Albanian judge at the ECtHR, Darian Pavli. This enabled a practical exchange of experiences with direct relevance to the situation in Albania, which can contribute significantly to strengthening cooperation between the two courts.
In a second visit to the ECtHR organized by the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection, the academic staff of the Constitutional Court were also able to gain valuable insights for their own work.
The participants of workshop in Belgrade Western Balkans region
At the end of 2024, German-speaking (junior) lawyers and language mediators from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia, who had already taken part in various internships, language courses and courses on German law organised by the IRZ, discussed current topics in German law and the participating countries at the Institute for Comparative Law in Belgrade.
The aim of the workshop, which was conducted entirely in German, was not only to strengthen the legal knowledge of the alumni, but also to improve their ability to exchange ideas in German on legal issues and to network with each other.
The participants themselves also gave presentations on topics such as the legal requirements for the EU accession sought by the partner states in the Western Balkans and comparative legal presentations on German law and the law of the region. Other priorities were constitutional law and legal training for trainee lawyers in Germany on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Basic Law.
The extensive programme of events was interspersed with entertaining elements such as a quiz on German law and the presentation of a birthday cake for the Basic Law, which was accepted by the Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Serbia, Mr Carsten Meyer-Wiefhausen.
(from right to left): The President of the Supreme Court of Albania, Sokol Sadushi, the German Ambassador, Karl Bergner and Dr Stefan Pürner, Head of Section, IRZ. Albania
The official handover of the documentation software for the case law of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania, which was developed with project funding from the Federal Foreign Office, took place in Tirana on 15 July 2024. The new database, which is accessible to judges and public prosecutors as well as lawyers and the public, helps to speed up court proceedings through faster research, standardisation of case law and greater transparency in the judiciary.
The President of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania, Sokol Sadushi, and the German Ambassador, Karl Bergner, thanked IRZ for its support for legal reforms in Albania. The country has been a partner state for many years and IRZ will continue its good cooperation with the Albanian partner institutions.
