This was stated by the member of the High Council of Justice Dmytro Lukianov in his presentation “European Integration of Ukraine: Prospects for the Judicial System” in the course of the VII Judicial Forum held by the Ukrainian Advocates' Association on March 7, 2025 in Kyiv.
The rapporteur informed that following the bilateral meetings with the European Commission within the framework of the negotiating Chapter 23 “Judiciary and Fundamental Rights” in September 2024 in Brussels, the European Commission prepared an interim report, in which it drew attention to the high level of reform implementation in judicial sector of Ukraine, but at the same time stressed the need to continue efforts to fully comply with the criteria for our country's membership in the European Union, in particular, the importance to ensure the independence, quality and effectiveness of the judicial system.
Dmytro Lukianov noted that as of today, the development of the draft Rule of Law Roadmap is being completed, according to which Ukraine should achieve 30 strategic results and introduce more than 110 measures to implement reforms over the next three years.
Among the strategic outcomes set out in the draft document are the following: improving access to justice and the efficiency of the administration of justice by optimizing the network of courts; strengthening the judicial independence and preventing interference with their activities in the administration of justice; improving the procedure for appointing and transferring judges; strengthening the capacity of the judiciary by filling judicial vacancies; introducing a comprehensive system for submitting and verifying declarations of integrity of judges; formation of a predictable, sustainable and open disciplinary practice for judges; digitalization of justice to increase transparency and efficiency of justice; modernization of the system of judicial training and legal education; audit of judicial governance and self-government bodies, elimination of duplication, improvement of their status, etc.
According to Dmytro Lukianov, reforms in the judicial system should address the most pressing problems that are accumulating in the judiciary. For example, one of the major problems that judges, especially judges of first instance courts, need to address is the uneven workload between judges in different courts, which sometimes varies by a factor of 30. At the same time, remuneration of judges is the same, and this creates a certain tension in the judicial society and a perception of injustice.
The second problem, the need to solve which is emphasized not only by Ukrainian judges but also by European experts, is the financing of the judicial system. This is an element of judicial independence from any pressure, which enables the entire judicial system to function effectively.
Finally, the third problem to be addressed is the improvement of disciplinary practice in line with European standards. This process has already begun following the amendments to the legislation and a service of disciplinary inspectors was formed within the High Council of Justice.
Foto: Асоціація адвокатів України