Rada makes bold step towards improvement of judiciary system

Ukraine’s parliament approved on June 29 bill #3711
making amendments to judiciary legislation that will re-establish the High
Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ), the body that will select candidates
for judges. The bill stipulates that all 16 members of the HQCJ will be
selected by a special commission consisting of three judges and three
independent experts offered by Ukraine’s western partners. The independent
members will have a decisive role in the selection process.

President Zelensky welcomed the approval of the bill,
pointing that this is an implementation of the government’s promise to revive
justice and rule of law in Ukraine.

The bill’s approval was also welcomed by the U.S. and
EU embassies in Ukraine, who also look forward to seeing the final text of the
bill. They also declared their readiness to support Ukraine in the creation of
the selection commission for HQCJ members. The U.S. embassy also tweeted that
it is looking forward to the adoption of bill #5068 on the reform of the High
Council of Justice, another important body that regulates courts in Ukraine.
The approval of such a law, which ensures that the council’s members have
“impeccable reputation and integrity” is one of the structural benchmarks
listed in the latest memorandum with the IMF.

Alexander Paraschiy:
Re-establishing and updating the HQCJ with its members having impeccable
reputation is indeed an important reform that gives a chance to partially
re-load Ukraine’s judiciary system. The HQCJ will select about 2000 new judges
soon, or about a third of all judges in Ukraine, according to Vitaliy Shabunin,
founder of the NGO Anti-Corruption Action Center. According to the center’s
report, about the same number of judges will have to undergo integrity checks
by the commission. Even higher chances for positive changes will be granted if
the Rada votes on another bill to change the selection process for the High
Council of Justice. Approval of the latter is also likely in upcoming weeks as
it is among the important preconditions for Ukraine to renew its cooperation
with the IMF.