The Chairman of the High Council of Justice, Hryhorii Usyk, in an interview with the National Telethon "Yedyni Novyny" noted that the ongoing judicial reform differs fundamentally from previous ones. As the selection of members to judicial bodies, which are assigned a key role in the formation of the judicial system, such as the High Council of Justice and the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine was carried out on completely new principles and procedures. In particular, with the participation of the international experts, who were the members of the Ethics Council and the Selection Commission for the selection of candidates for the positions of the members of the HQCJ.
“And according to the assessment of both international experts, including G7 ambassadors, and domestic experts, the selection to these bodies was carried out transparently, the judicial system is being transformed, is in the process of reformation. I hope that, taking into account those laws that will be additionally adopted, the judicial reform will be successfully completed”, stated Hryhorii Usyk.
The Chairman of the High Council of Justice explained that the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine is responsible for the selection of judges. Currently, there is a shortage of personnel in the judicial system, which amounts to over 2,000 vacancies, nearly a third of the entire judicial corps. The renewal of the judicial system will take place through the recruitment of new highly professional and virtuous judges.
«The request for justice is currently the most pressing requirement of our society. Ukraine has already taken many steps in reforming the judicial system so that it meets European standards. The most important issue that has not been achieved is the achievement of confidence in the judiciary. But not only judges need authority and trust. It is necessary for society and citizens, who must be sure that honest and highly professional judges work in the courts. They should have assurance that their rights, interests, and freedoms will be protected in the courts», - noted Hryhorii Usyk.
At the same time, the High Council of Justice is the only body in the judicial system responsible for exercising disciplinary functions over judges. Since August 2021, this function has not been performed due to a change in legislation.
«A draft law has been submitted to the Parliament regarding the prosecution of judges and the establishment of the disciplinary inspectors service at the High Council of Justice. This is a new independent unit within the structure of the HCJ, which will carry out preliminary verification of disciplinary complaints against judges. It is assumed that the selection for the positions of disciplinary inspectors will be carried out by an independent competitive commission based on completely new principles and procedures» - summarized Hryhorii Usyk.