Study trip for judges of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania to the Federal Administrative Court and the Constitutional Court of the State of Berlin, 28 to 29 June 2022.
Strategic Framework
Legal Policy Starting Point
Albania placed an application for EU membership as far back as 2009 and has been an official accession candidate since 2014. The first accession conference was not held until 19 July 2022, marking the start of the accession negotiations. The screening process by the European Commission began directly after the conference. A decision will be reached on opening the first negotiation cluster with relevant topic areas on the basis of the screening report at the end of the process.
As a NATO member and EU accession candidate, Albania has adopted a stance of full alignment with the sanctions measures imposed against Russia due to the war in Ukraine, in line with the European Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).
The challenges for the judicial system remain high due to the ongoing vetting process. As part of the accession negotiations with the European Union, Albania committed to an intensive review of the judiciary and public prosecutor’s office and passed Law No. 84/2016 “On the Transitional Re-evaluation of Judges and Prosecutors in the Republic of Albania” (the Vetting Law for short) in August 2016. The thorough screening is used to review the professional suitability, financial circumstances and integrity of judges and public prosecutors. Around 64 percent of the judges and public prosecutors reviewed did not successfully complete the procedure and were therefore required to step down from their positions. This created a gap, which has led to significant problems in all areas of the judicial field. Albania was, however, able to make progress in 2022. At the Supreme Court, 16 out of a total of 17 positions are now filled by recently appointed judges, which has reduced the backlog of cases for the first time in six years. Furthermore, the full complement of judges was appointed to the Constitutional Court in 2022.
The School of Magistrates plays a pivotal role in the education of new judges and public prosecutors. Its capacities have now been increased, although they remain insufficient.
Overall Concept
The project work conducted by IRZ in Albania is financed by funds provided by the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Federal Foreign Office and the European Union. These financial resources complement each other and enable processing of a wide range of topics in cooperation with a large number of partners.
As in previous years, the area of court organisation was one of the priorities within the bilateral cooperation in 2022, with the Supreme Court as cooperation partner. This involved installation of the technical facilities (software and hardware) in the Documentation Department for an effective and efficient management of judgements. Employees at the Supreme Court received training in use of the software at the same time.
In addition, IRZ – together with various partner institutions – addressed important topics such as disciplinary law of judges and administrative law.
Bilateral cooperation continued, in some cases with new partners, after the end of the EU-funded EURALIUS V project under the leadership of IRZ.
IRZ also intensified cooperation with the Albanian School of Magistrates, which, within the framework of the vetting process, plays a key role in the initial and continuous training of young legal professional. This cooperation involved a large number of further training events on a variety of topics.
At the same time, the constitutional complaint, which was introduced in Albania in 2016 based on the German model, was a thematic focus of IRZ’s project work in Albania. IRZ worked with the Albanian Chamber of Advocacy to hold a number of further training courses on this topic for legal professionals in the various regions of Albania. In future, the Constitutional Court will again be involved more strongly in the consultations.
Focuses of Activity in 2022
Constitutional Law, Human Rights and their Enforceability
Regional conference on “The interaction between ordinary and constitutional jurisdiction to uphold the rule of law” in cooperation with the Constitutional Courts and Supreme Courts of Kosovo and Albania
Three seminars (one face-to-face event, two online seminars) on the topic of “Constitutional complaints” in cooperation with the Albanian Chamber of Advocacy
Public Law
Study trip to Leipzig and Berlin on the topic of on the topic of “Administrative court jurisdiction” for judges at the Albanian Supreme Court
Online expert exchange on the topic of “Optimisation of workflows at Albanian administrative courts” in cooperation with the High Judicial Council of Albania
Study trip for administrative judges and representatives of the High Judicial Council of Albania on the topic of “Effective and efficient administrative court jurisdiction”
Conference on “Judicial ethics and disciplinary proceedings against judges” in cooperation with the Albanian Special Appeal Chamber
Administration of Justice
Conference on “The role of the notary’s office in combating money laundering” in cooperation with the Federal Chamber of Notaries and the Albanian National Chamber of Notaries
Criminal and Penitentiary Law
Conference for judges at the Albanian Supreme Court on “International mutual legal assistance in criminal matters”
Basic and Further Training
Hybrid seminar on the topic of the “Judiciary and media” in cooperation with the Albanian School of Magistrates
Hybrid seminar on the topic of the “Distinction between administrative court jurisdiction and constitutional court jurisdiction” in cooperation with the Albanian School of Magistrates
Two hybrid seminars on the topic of “Cyber-crime” in cooperation with the Albanian School of Magistrates
Study trip to Germany for staff of the Documentation Department at the Supreme Court of Albania
Three online working and expert talks in cooperation with the Documentation Department at the Supreme Court of Albania
Other Support Measures
Installation of documentation software at the Supreme Court
Provision of the Supreme Court library with English-language commentaries on the German Civil Code
European Union-funded project “Technical Assistance to Support the Implementation of the Crosscutting Justice Strategy in Albania” (JUSTAL project)
Key data in the JUSTAL project:
Lead partner: IRZ
Junior partner: DAI (Austria/Belgium/USA)
Type of contract: Service contract
Project budget: €1.66 million
Term: two years, from June 2022
Human resources: Three key experts (Dr Agnes Bernhard, Anita Mihailova, Sascha Rusch) plus 1,120 days for short-term experts
The work priorities of the JUSTAL project are partly linked to the EURALIUS V project, which IRZ implemented as lead partner from 2014 until the end of 2021. The central focus of the advisory services is firstly to strengthen coordination mechanisms at the Ministry of Justice for the ongoing reform of the judiciary within the framework of the “Crosscutting Justice Strategy”, including the associated action plan. The Ministry of Justice plays a lead role in implementing the contents of the aforementioned strategy, as well as in coordinating the independent judicial institutions involved in the process. The project involves close cooperation with the Codification Department at the Ministry of Justice, which adapts relevant laws of the EU acquis in regard to the ongoing EU accession negotiations. The Ministry of Justice has also requested support in the comprehensive revision or rewriting of the Albanian Civil Code; however, only initial methodological support can be provided, as this is not included in the project contract and project resources are limited. With regard to the screening process, the project team, in coordination with the responsible local EU Delegation, will provide significant advisory services beyond the scope of the project contract and, in particular, support preparation of the complex tables of concordance that compare national Albanian law with EU law and enable Brussels to monitor harmonisation with EU law on an ongoing basis. The project’s public relations component focuses on strategies and implementation measures that communicate the continuing judicial reform process.
Outlook
In 2023 as well, IRZ will actively support legal and judicial reforms and the consolidation of rule of law structures in Albania within the framework of bilateral cooperation and the aforementioned JUSTAL project. Moreover, IRZ plans to deepen and significantly expand its cooperation with the Supreme Court in the year ahead. Advisory services will focus on cooperation with the High Judicial Council, the Special Appeal Chamber and the Constitutional Court. IRZ will also continue its successful cooperation with the School of Magistrates in the area of initial and continuous training for legal professionals. Furthermore, there are plans to expand cooperation with the Albanian Chamber of Advocacy and the Chamber of Notaries to include other priority areas. IRZ is playing an important role within the framework of the JUSTAL project to prepare Albania for EU accession.
Dr Jutta Kemper (left, centre) welcomes the Albanian delegation led by the Deputy Minister of Interior Besfort Lamallari (opposite) during the study trip on “Recovery of Assets” at the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection
Strategic Framework
Legal Policy Starting Point
The European Council decided to open accession negotiations with Albania in March 2020. At the same time, Albania was urged to initiate further approximation measures prior to the first intergovernmental conference that marks the formal beginning of the accession negotiations. Measures included implementation of electoral law reform in line with the recommendations of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the human rights institution of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). In response to this, the parties in parliament reached an overarching agreement on a reform of electoral law in the middle of the year, facilitated by the EU, the US and the UK. Further changes to the election system followed shortly afterwards, which also required an amendment to the constitution. The parliamentary vote did not wait for agreement in the so-called Political Council, an all-party body that is supposed to agree on changes in electoral law. This procedure was criticised by the EU.
Other preconditions for the start of accession negotiations concern the implementation of the judicial reform, in particular restoring the operability of the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court, which have not had a quorum for years. This is due to the vetting procedure that vets all Albanian judges and the Public Prosecutors concerning their assets, their background and integrity as well as concerning their professional qualifications.
Numerous positions in the judiciary remain vacant as a result. On a positive note, however, enough judges were appointed to the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court over the course of the year to enable one chamber in each body to resume work. But the process of filling vacancies was not without problems, especially at the Constitutional Court.
In addition, Albania has created specialised structures to combat corruption and organised crime by establishing the new agency SPAK (Struktura e Posaçme Anti-Korrupsion/Special Anti-Corruption Structure).
Overall Concept
The COVID-19 pandemic initially had a significant impact on collaboration with Albanian partner institutions. But the process of switching cooperation to digital formats proceeded quickly. In this context, IRZ provided advice in bilateral projects funded by the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection and the Federal Foreign Office, as well as within the framework of the EU-funded EURALIUS V project. Emphasis is placed on preventing duplicate work in the overall concept and organisation of the projects.
Cooperation with the School of Magistrates, which plays a key role in basic and further training of young legal professionals, is particularly significant for IRZ. Albanian legal professionals received further training, and IRZ and the School of Magistrates jointly developed an e-commentary. The constitutional complaint, which was introduced in Albania in 2016 based on the German model, is a thematic focus of cooperation with the Albanian National Chamber of Advocacy.
During the reporting year, IRZ also provided technical expertise with regard to the provisions of European law as a means of supporting the new authority SPAK and other relevant parties. Encouragingly, cooperation with the Supreme Court resumed after years of standstill.
Focus of Activity in 2020
Constitutional Law, Human Rights and their Enforceability
Online further training on “Use of the constitutional complaint” for the lawyers in the regions of Vlora, Elbasan and Shkodra in cooperation with the Albanian Bar Association
Civil and Commercial Law
Online seminar on inheritance law, together with the Federal Chamber of Notaries and the National Chamber of Notaries of Albania
Online seminar on the specifics of civil proceedings before the Supreme Court in cooperation with the Supreme Court
Public Law
Online seminar on the delineation between civil and administrative court jurisdiction in cooperation with the School of Magistrates
Online seminar on the Administrative Procedure Code together with the School of Magistrates
Criminal and Penitentiary Law
Study trip to Berlin on the topic of “Asset recovery” in cooperation with the Albanian Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of the Interior, the Public Prosecutor’s Office as well as the Agency for the Administration of Seized and Confiscated Assets
Online roundtable discussions on the topic of “Asset recovery” in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of the Interior, the Public Prosecutor’s Office as well as the Agency for the Administration of Seized and Confiscated Assets
Preparation of a manual on asset recovery
Basic and Further Training
Establishment of an e-commentary in cooperation with the School of Magistrates and EURALIUS V
Online seminar “The legal lawyers in public” together with the Albanian Bar Association
Project funded by the European Union
EU Grant Project: EURALIUS V “Consolidation of the Justice System in Albania”
Since April 2018, IRZ has been in charge of implementing the EU-funded EURALIUS V project as lead contractor (volume: € 7.5 million, term: 36 months until March 2021, in case of an approval of a non-cost time extension the project will be extended up to December 2021). Including over 30 experts and more than ten institutions, the consortium partners in the project are: Centre for International Legal Cooperation (CILC/Netherlands), Agency for Economic Development (aed/Austria) and Consiglio Superiore della Magistratura (CSM/Italy).
Despite the considerable impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the EURALIUS V project was able to continue its work without interruption, thanks to the immense commitment shown by the entire team.
EURALIUS V concentrates on overall consolidation of the legal framework of the judicial reform developed in the predecessor project EURALIUS IV, with the priorities:
Development of a transition strategy to compensate for the personnel effects of ongoing vetting procedures and support in implementing the transition strategy
Capacity building measures for the newly established self-governing institutions within the judiciary
Strategies for effective reduction in the case backlog at the Supreme Court
Support for the Special Public Prosecutor’s Offices and the anti-corruption courts and
Concurrent IT measures for the entire judicial sector
Of particular note is the development of a “Transition Matrix”, which provides transition strategies for continued effective organisation of the work of the courts and Public Prosecutor’s Offices until they are back to full staffing levels. This is of great importance given the reduced number of judges and public prosecutors due to the ongoing vetting procedure. The final phase of the project concentrates on assuring the sustainability of implemented measures and on knowledge transfer to the Albanian institutions.
Outlook
Albania will remain an important partner to IRZ in 2021, especially with regard to the accession negotiations and the associated reforms that are necessary. Therefore it is planned to broaden cooperation with the Supreme Court in 2021, in addition to continuing the EURALIUS V project, which may be extended until the end of 2021. Moreover, activities in the area of the asset recovery will be further intensified and cooperation with the School of Magistrates to provide basic and further training to legal professionals will continue. Additional topics will also be added to widen cooperation with the National Chamber of Albanian Bar Association.
The same applies to the work with the National Chamber of Notaries of Albania.
During the Steering Committee meeting for the EU project EURALIUS V. Front centre: EURALIUS V Team Leader Dr Agnes Bernhard, to the right: Dr Stephen Stork, EU Delegation Albania
Strategic Framework
Legal Policy Starting Point
Albania has been an official EU candidate country since mid-2014. The EU Commission recommended opening accession negotiations with Albania back in April 2018 to acknowledge the progress that had been made in many areas by then. Nevertheless, it was not possible to start accession negotiations in the reporting year, as not all of the EU Member States agreed to this step. This has been met with great disappointment in Albania, as the country‘s accession (and that of North Macedonia) is a centrepiece in the EU Strategy for the Western Balkans, which essentially envisages closer ties between Albania and the EU as a means of contributing to the ongoing stabilisation and reconciliation of the region. For years, Albania has made strenuous efforts to implement reforms – especially in the judicial field – to bring the country closer to possible EU membership.
Compounding this situation, the government under Prime Minister Edi Rama faced strong domestic pressure in 2019. Student protests in the first half of the year demanded, among other things, more say in the running of universities, halving of tuition fees and significant improvements in the housing situation. The protests were effective, causing the government to give in in some areas.
Moreover, the opposition resigned their parliamentary mandates at the beginning of 2019 in protesting – in their perspective – a corrupt government, which they accused of election rigging and having links to organised crime. The blockade led to violent riots in some places. The opposition also boycotted the local elections in summer. The government, which rules with an absolute parliamentary majority, did not react, and no new parliamentary elections took place.
Albania‘s legal and political situation is further exacerbated by the fact that key institutions such as the Constitutional Court and the High Court are currently not operational. As a result of the vetting procedure with its comprehensive review of judicial personnel, in particular judges and public prosecutors, in regard to their professional qualifications, financial circumstances and personal integrity, many posts in courts are vacant and filled only slowly.
Overall Concept
IRZ has advised Albania since 2000 both in direct bilateral cooperation with institutions such as the Constitutional Court, the High Court and the School of Magistrates, as well as in EU-funded projects. In many cases, bilateral cooperation has made it possible to address or deepen areas that could not be covered by EU-funded projects.
Unfortunately, IRZ was unable to continue its cooperation with its main partners, the High Court and the Constitutional Court, in 2019 due to the situation outlined above. Nonetheless, constitutional law was a priority of IRZ activities in Albania. For example, further training seminars for lawyers were held in the regions of Albania to introduce the constitutional complaint and its application.
At the same time, the cooperation with the School of Magistrates, which in the current situation plays a key role in the basic and further training of young legal professionals, has significantly intensified. For instance, IRZ jointly with the School of Magistrates offered continued training events on a variety of topics.
In addition, as part of a project funded by the Federal Foreign Office, an electronic commentary is being set up, which will provide for lowthreshold and free access to legal commentaries to all Albanian legal practitioners. The commentaries themselves will be written by Albanian authors and reviewed by German experts prior to publication to ensure a uniform quality standard. This project is carried out in cooperation with the EURALIUS V project.
Focus of Activity in 2019
Constitutional Law/Human Rights and their Enforceability
Further training for judges and public prosecutors in cooperation with the School of Magistrates on the subject of “Constitutional vs. administrative court jurisdiction“ in Tirana
Further training courses for lawyers in cooperation with the Bar on the topic “Application of the constitutional complaint“ in Durres and Korca
Public Law
Seminar on administrative law in cooperation with the School of Magistrates in Tirana
Seminar on asylum law in cooperation with the School of Magistrates in Tirana
Criminal Law and Penitentiary Law
Seminar for lawyers in cooperation with the Bar in Tirana on the topic of the Code of Criminal Procedure
Seminar on “Criminal law and ECHR case-law“ in cooperation with the School of Magistrates in Tirana
Basic and Further Training
Kick-off event for e-commentary in cooperation with the School of Magistrates in Tirana
Training courses for authors on writing e-commentaries in cooperation with the School of Magistrates in Tirana
Project funded by the European Union
EU Grant project: EURALIUS V “Consolidation of the Justice System in Albania“
Since April 2018, IRZ is implementing the EU-funded EURALIUS V project as a lead contractor, a follow-up of the EURALIUS IV project, which was also successfully implemented by IRZ.
EURALIUS V has a total volume of €7.5 million and will run for 36 months until March 2021. The consortium partners are the same as in the predecessor project, so the “Centre for International Legal Cooperation“ (CILC/the Netherlands) and the “Agency for Economic Development“ (aed/Austria). A new partner is the “Consiglio Superiore della Magistratura“ (CSM) from Italy.
Dr Agnes Bernhard from Austria is again the team leader on the ground. While the EURALIUS IV project focused on elaborating the legal basis for the ongoing judicial reform, EURALIUS V is strongly focused on the overall consolidation of the reform measures. The priorities here include:
capacity building measures for newly established self-administration institutions of the judiciary,
strategies to effectively reduce the substantial case backlog at the High Court,
support for the special prosecutors‘ offices and the anti-corruption courts, and
accompanying IT measures for the entire judicial sector.
Overall, work on the EURALIUS V project continuously covers more than ten beneficiary institutions: The Parliament, the Ministry of Justice, the High Judicial Council, the High Prosecutorial Council, the Justice Appointment Council, the High Court, the School of Magistrates and the Chambers of Free Legal Professions, to name just a few.
The project is organised in a total of five teams, each of which looks after individual institutions. The teams are led by one or two international experts, with additional support from numerous national colleagues. The teams have the following responsibilities:
Team 1: Parliament and Ministry of Justice
Team 2: Governance Institutions, the High Judicial Council, the High Prosecutorial Council, the Justice Appointment Council and the Judicial Inspectorate
Team 3: Court Organisation, prosecution offices, Free Legal Professions
Team 4: IT in the judicial system, with the aim of introducing a standardised case management system
Team 5: Basic and continued training for judges, prosecutors and judicial staff
The following exemplarily listed measures constitute priorities for implementing the reform legislation co-developed within the framework of the predecessor project EURALIUS IV:
support in the preparation of regulations, directives, decrees, manuals and expert opinions on legal issues,
commentaries on draft legislation,
development of IT programs,
support in the maintenance of IT systems,
preparation of tender documents for a new IT case management system,
restructuring of the School of Magistrates,
revision of the curricula, among many other things.
A pleasing aspect is that IRZ is also able to support the School of Magistrates within the framework of its bilateral work through the provision of advisory services that are not contractually covered by EURALIUS V.
The EURALIUS V project reached a number of its objectives in 2019. On one hand, the remaining reform-laws co-developed under the predecessor project EURALIUS IV were adopted. In addition, the Justice Appointment Council and the Special Prosecutor‘s Office for Anti-Corruption were established. Additionally, progress was made in the appointment of constitutional judges.
For the upcoming final year of the project, the priorities include supporting the Constitutional Court and High Court in restoring their functionality. Moreover, the latter institution will receive support in the development and implementation of a strategy to effectively reduce the considerable backlog of cases. Another priority will be on advising the special public prosecutors‘ offices and the anti-corruption courts. In view of the ongoing vetting procedures resulting in the reduction of the number of judges and prosecutors, the above measures constitute a challenge for the entire Albanian judicial system.
Outlook
IRZ will continue bilateral cooperation with the Constitutional Court and the High Court in 2020, as soon as they become operational. IRZ also intends to significantly expand its activities with the School of Magistrates over the coming year. Among other things, there are plans to further establish an e-commentary that will provide all members of the legal professions with free access to current case law and commentaries on laws. In addition, asset recovery will be a priority of advisory measures, and initial contacts have already been established with the relevant institutions in Albania.
Moreover, IRZ will remain highly committed in Albania within the framework of the EURALIUS V project.
