The delegation during their visit to the Thuringian Labour Court: Susanne Engel (centre), President of the Thuringian Labour Court, and Head of Delegation Sagatbek Suleimen (on her left), a judge at the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan
As part of its cooperation with the Republic of Kazakhstan, the IRZ organised a working visit for a delegation of five from the Law Academy at the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan from 9 to 12 September 2019.
During their stay, the Kazakh guests visited the Erfurt mediation practice EMP e.V., the Local Court of Erfurt, the Thuringian Bar Association, the Thuringian Ministry of Migration, Justice and Consumer Protection and the Thuringian Labour Court.
They discussed with German experts subjects including the arbitration judge procedure as an internal court process for dispute resolution after a law suit has commenced and the methods used by arbitration judges for conflict management. The participants were also able to learn about the work of the Thuringian settlement advisory committee and discuss the possibilities for alternative dispute resolution.
The members of the delegation showed a great deal of interest in the talks and will certainly use the knowledge they acquired during their visit of “alternative dispute resolution” in their own work in this area.
Dr. Christian Schaich, Administrative Director at the ZOiS, during his lecture, and Bernd-Friedemann Joop (seated on his right), a judge at the Administrative Court of Dresden Kazakhstan
In partnership with the Academy of Justice at the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan, a seminar on administrative jurisdiction was held in Nursultan on 5 April 2019. The seminar was aimed at students on the “Law” masters programme, providing them with an insight into the key structures of German administrative law.
The experts taking part on behalf of the IRZ were Dr. Christian Schaich, Administrative Director at the Centre for Eastern European and International Studies (ZOiS) in Berlin and Bernd-Friedemann Joop, a judge at the Administrative Court of Dresden.
The focus of the German expert lectures was on the following topics:
Principle of interpretation;
Principle of investigation,
Pre-trial procedures;
Deciding on a court hearing / pre-trial
Types of administrative claim.
The President of the municipal court of Nursultan and other judges also attended the seminar to follow the interesting explanations given by the IRZ experts.
Background information
As part of the extensive reform programme in Kazakhstan, focussing on advances in the legal and judicial system and in administration, the objective is to make further progress towards an independent administrative jurisdiction and a code of administrative procedure in the court system.
A code of administrative procedure has been drafted, regulating proceedings relating to public legal disputes between citizens and the authorities. In addition to this draft, an administrative procedural law is also being developed, which sets out the legal regulations for administrative proceedings.
IRZ experts, Senior Public Prosecutor Andreas May (left) and Professor Dr. Bijan Nowrousian Kazakhstan
On 6 and 7 March 2019, the IRZ, together with the General Prosecutor’s Office and the Constitutional Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan organised an international conference in Akbulak in the Almaty region. The subject of the conference was “An effective penal policy and a modern model for criminal proceedings as a prerequisite for the proper protection of citizens’ constitutional rights.”
The annual events on current legal issues held in Akbulak offer a good platform for exchange between international experts and very high-ranking Kazakh participants. This year’s conference was also followed with great interest by the media.
The IRZ experts taking part were Senior Public Prosecutor Andreas May, head of the Centre for Combating Cyber Crime at the General Prosecutor’s Office in Frankfurt, and Prof. Dr. Bijan Nowrousian, a professor in criminal law and administrative offences at the University of Applied Sciences for Public Administration and Management of North Rhine-Westphalia in Münster. Speakers from Kazakhstan included Marat Akhmetzhanov, Deputy Prosecutor General of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and Rashid Zhakupov, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Kazakhstan.
The focus of the German expert lectures was on the following topics:
Procedural guarantees and protecting human rights in criminal proceedings,
asset recovery (including virtual currencies) – basics of the new German law and initial experience,
legal issues in the context of corruption offences,
record-keeping and inspection and
onus of proof and appraising evidence.
The Kazakh speakers looked in more detail at the subjects of the constitutional requirements for changes to criminal law and criminal procedural law and the modern practice of criminal investigation in criminal cases.
In view of the continuing need for reform, it would make sense to continue holding these kinds of events in Akbulak, provided that this is possible in the context of the current political upheaval in Kazakhstan. They offer a good opportunity for discussion with high-profile representatives, thereby gaining a wide-ranging insight into the current legal situation in the country.
