Between February and May 2022, the focus of IRZ's bilateral project work in Albania was the cooperation with the Albanian School of Magistrates, which is responsible for the education and training of the judiciary in the Republic of Albania.
Following a vetting procedure, the School of Magistrates then plays a central role in the re-staffing of judges and public prosecutors. The education and training capacities of the School of Magistrates have therefore been increased in recent years, and the demand for German and European expertise in legal training practice has also risen steadily.
In this context, IRZ will continue to support the School of Magistrates in 2022 within the framework of its curriculum with the training and further education of judges and public prosecutors on various topics:
The judiciary and the media
On 10 February 2022, a first hybrid seminar on "The judiciary and the media" was held at the School of Magistrates. For the IRZ, Ms Brigitte Koppenhöfer, retired presiding judge at the Düsseldorf Regional Court, spoke on the (tense) relationship between the judiciary and the media regarding the press and public relations activities of the courts and criminal prosecution agencies. The event focused on Albanian, German and European best practices, legal bases, prerequisites and (crisis) strategies for proactive and procedural press and public relations activities.
Division of competences between administrative and constitutional jurisdiction
On 15 March 2022, IRZ organised another hybrid seminar with the Albanian School of Magistrates on the division of competences between the administrative court jurisdiction and constitutional court jurisdiction in Albania. Professor Michaela Wittinger, Professor of Constitutional Law at the Federal University of Public Administration in Mannheim, participated for Germany on behalf of IRZ. The main focus of the event was on the respective powers, the necessary delimitation of competences and the interaction between administrative court jurisdiction and constitutional court jurisdiction against the backdrop of the comparatively young administrative court jurisdiction, which was introduced in Albania in 2012 as a separate branch of the courts.
Cybercrime
On 28 March and 6 May 2022, IRZ hosted two hybrid events on the topic of "Cybercrime" in cooperation with the School of Magistrates. The subject of the seminars was the adaptation of the Albanian legal system to the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, with a particular focus on racist and xenophobic acts on the net (28 March 2022) and the issue of securing and using digital evidence in criminal proceedings (6 May 2022). IRZ was delighted that Mr Andreas May, Senior Public Prosecutor of the Central Office for Combating Cybercrime at the General Prosecutor’s Office in Frankfurt am Main accepted our invitation to present the German and European legal framework and the German practice from his expert viewpoint.
Around 80 representatives from the Albanian judiciary and Public Prosecutor´s Office took part in the four events, which were funded by the Federal Ministry of Justice. The seminars were held at the School of Magistrates, which encouraged a lively and trusting atmosphere for discussions and a vibrant exchange of expertise and experience between the Albanian participants and the German-Albanian contingent of speakers.
During the kick-off event: "Series of training sessions in cooperation with the documentation centre of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania - methodology and practical exercises for the formation of legal sentences" on 20 December 2021 in Tirana (Albania). At the speaker's table, right to left: Dr. Arta Vorpsi, Cabinet Director at the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania, Mr. Frank Hupfeld, Head of Section for South East Europe II / South Caucasus (IRZ), Thomas Traar, judge at the District Court of Bruck an der Mur (Austria) and Mr. Rainer Schliebs, RD, head of the documentation centre at the Federal Supreme Court. Republic of Albania
In 2021, the IRZ helped the Supreme Court of the Republic of Albania to set up a documentation centre as part of the project funding for "court organisation" by the Federal Foreign Office.
The documentation centre at the Supreme Court will help judges of all instances to carry out their judicial tasks, and will make court judgements publicly accessible by documenting court judgements for internal and external use and designing a corresponding case law and documentation system. This is intended to create a more modern, efficient and transparent organisation of the court, and to improve public trust in the judiciary overall.
Against this backdrop, the IRZ organised a study trip for Dr. Arta Vorpsi, Cabinet Director at the Supreme Court, to the Federal Supreme Court (BGH) and the Administrative Court of Baden-Württemberg (VHG BW) from 13-16 December 2021. During her stay in Germany, Dr. Vorpsi gained some practical insights into the structures, working practices and methods of the documentation centres of the BGH and the Federal Constitutional Court (BVerfG). During the visit, the head of the documentation centre at the BGH, Mr. Rainer Schliebs, and Mr. Hans-Joachim Dose, presiding judge at the BGH, and Mr. Florian Schmitt, an employee at the documentation centre of the BVerfG, explained the German practice and experiences in this area. Solutions and suggestions for the Albanian context were also identified. This exchange of expertise and experience in Karlsruhe was rounded off by a visit to the Administrative Court in Mannheim, where Dr. Vorpsi studied the work of the nationwide unique asylum documentation at the VGH BW. Dr. Vorpsi had talks with Professor Jan Bergmann, Presiding judge at the VGH BW, Dr. Kathrin Osteneck, judge at the VGH BW and Dr. Sophie Roche, head of the documentation centre at the VGH BW.
In addition to this study trip, the IRZ organised a kick-off event on 20 December 2021 in Tirana on the theme "Methodology and practical exercises for the formation of legal propositions". The workshop was designed for academic staff and the future team at the documentation centre at the Supreme Court. Under the direction of Mr. Rainer Schliebs, Head of the Documentation Office of the BGH, and Mr. Thomas Traar, judge at the District Court of Bruck an der Mur (Austria), the participants were shown methods and best practices for drafting legal provisions by analysing German, Austrian and Albanian decisions and practical group exercises.
In addition to this exchange of expertise and experience, the IRZ supported the development of the documentation centre of the Supreme Court through extensive donations in kind. It provided standard works on the law of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights, and the documentation centre was equipped with new computers, laptops, scanners, a projector and other office supplies.
In 2022, the IRZ will also provide technical support to establish the documentation centre at the Supreme Court in Albania as part of the project funding of the Federal Foreign Office, and will further expand the successful cooperation.
The focus of the bilateral partnership with the partner state Albania in April and May 2021 was on the cooperation with the School of Magistrates. The School of Magistrates is responsible for the training and education of judges and public prosecutors.
Four online events were dedicated to the following subjects:
“The structure of public prosecutor’s offices and the role of the Public Prosecutor General” on 9 April 2021
“Justice and the media” on 15 April 2021
“Personal rights and freedom of speech for judges” on 4 May 2021
“Constitutional complaints” on 7 May 2021
The online seminar was attended by the following German experts:
Walter Selter, a former Public Prosecutor General
Brigitte Koppenhöfer, a former presiding judge at the regional court
Prof. Dr. Jan Bergmann, President of the Senate at the Administrative Court of Baden-Württemberg
Such events have allowed IRZ to expand on its existing trusting working relationship and to offer the appropriate advice. For example, the series of events on the subject of constitutional complaints that began in 2018 has been enriched by the cooperation with the School of Magistrates.
The seminars also tied in with current debates, such as law no. 97/2016 on “the organisation and role of public prosecutors in the Republic of Albania”.
IRZ experts have been following and supporting developments in the partner state of Albania for many years and brought German and European views and experiences into the discussions.
These events were financed as part of the institutional partnership by the German Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection (BMJV). There are plans to continue the partnership with the School of Magistrates in the course of the year.
