In November 2019, during an event at the Supreme Court, I had the pleasure of discussing with the then President of the European Court of Human Rights, Mr.Lino-Alexander Sicilianos, about the wheeling and dealing with the reform in the field of Justice and the coordinated effort made by all competent bodies in order to fundamentally reform the judicial system of our country.
It was a discussion whose starting point was his positive references in favour of the reform of the judicial system in Cyprus, which he described as a very important contribution, in full compliance with the requirements of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights. He also made the particularly important recognition - and I am using his words - that the judiciary in Cyprus enjoys absolute independence, both by the courts themselves, which safeguard and protect the independence of the institution of justice, and by the state mechanisms that both respect and protect the independence of the judiciary, functioning as a "paradise", as he said, "within what is happening on a pan-European scale at the moment [ON THE ISSUE OF JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE]".
This independence, dear colleagues, is the main pillar of the creation of the rule of law, with the choice of quoting Mr Sicilianos's references being not circumstantial but, on the contrary, selective, in order to re-emphasise the fact that the judiciary in Cyprus suffers, for the most part, from multiple problems of delays in the adjudication of cases, which, as a "Hydra", put the Cypriot judicial system on the path of collapse.
The reform of the courts, as recently passed by the House of Representatives and currently being implemented, responds to the recommendations made by the GRECO Commission, the Rule of Law of the European Union and the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe and is not only aimed at speeding up the administration of justice. That is one part of it. Part of it is also the tertiary process hatched by the creation of the two independent, now specialised tertiary judicial mechanisms, and the very important safeguards that are being introduced as a guarantee of legal certainty. Something which you know, dear colleagues, is one of the serious problems we face today when different configurations of the same Court of Justice take different decisions on the same issues.
Of course, a second issue of paramount importance which I believe is resolved by the reform of the highest level of the courts is the safeguarding of the so-called "checks and balances" as the mutual control of the Supreme Court judges by an independent body abolishes the current situation where the disciplinary control of a judge is carried out by "brother" judges, members of the very same body. The new proposed structure ensures that decisions of the new Supreme Judicial Council, composed of Judges of the new Supreme Court, can be appealed to the Secondary Supreme Judicial Council, composed of Judges of the new Supreme Constitutional Court, who will not participate in the first instance proceedings.
On the positive side, of course, I should note that the changes introduced ensure that when the full plenary of one Supreme Court or the other is sitting on matters within their jurisdiction, the hearing of cases by Judges of the other Third-tier Tribunal will be able to proceed unhindered, thus preventing delays in the hearing of cases where the current High Court has to meet in full plenary session to decide, to the detriment of the speed of hearing other cases.
Further, the creation of the new Court of Appeal with specialized compositions (chambers) of Appellate Judges relieved of the time-consuming task of administering the Courts, and thus unhindered in hearing appeals, is another very essential tool in expediting the hearing of appeals. The creation of specialized courts (Commercial and Maritime Courts) is also important.
Finally, I appreciate the composition of the new Supreme Judicial Council, as well as the Advisory Councils enriched, even if non-voting, with non-judicial ones such as the Attorney General of the Republic, the President of the Bar Association and two other renowned jurists will provide additional value to the Councils, since the broadening in participation ends the cries of "closed circle" in the judiciary, enhancing the transparency and objectivity of decision-making.
Seeking, however, not to extend myself by withholding time on issues that our learned colleagues will be interested in later in the debate and with these thoughts as an introductory statement, let me conclude by thanking you for the invitation to introduce today's debate on what I consider to be the most important legal issue of recent years in the Cypriot judicial system. I therefore consider that such events, which allow for analysis and in-depth analysis of the details of the reform, are entirely beneficial and necessary so that the transition to the new regime is accompanied by the smoothest possible implementation of the changes.
Thank you.
(ML)
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