COUNCIL OF EUROPE

COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS
Resolution Res(2002)12 establishing the European Commission for the efficiency of justice (CEPEJ)
(Adopted by the Committee of Ministers on 18 September 2002 at the 808th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies)

The Committee of Ministers under the terms of Articles 15.a and 16 of the Statute of the Council of Europe,
Recognising that the rule of law on which European democracies rest cannot be ensured without fair, efficient and accessible judicial systems;
Acknowledging also that the rule of law principle can be a reality only if citizens can uphold their legal rights and challenge unlawful acts;
Underlining the need to improve inter-state co-operation by, inter alia, analysing the results achieved by the different judicial systems, facilitating the implementation of the international legal instruments concerning efficiency and fairness of justice and defining concrete means to improve the functioning of the judicial systems in Europe;
Stressing the need for enhanced communication amongst all those principally concerned with the functioning of justice;
Conscious of the need to make full use of all appropriate information and communication technologies to facilitate access to justice, improve the efficiency and the functioning of the judicial system, reduce the costs of justice and extend the service available to the public;
Bearing in mind the requirements of the European Convention on Human Rights, and in particular its Articles 5, 6, 13 and 14, as well as the relevant provisions of its protocols, the case law of the European Court of Human Rights and the relevant international legal instruments drawn up within the Council of Europe in the area of the efficiency and fairness of justice and the necessity of their proper implementation;
Having regard also to the decisions of the Committee of Ministers concerning the monitoring procedure regarding questions relating to the functioning of the judicial system;
Having regard to the resolutions of the 20th, 22nd, 23rd and 24th Conferences of European Ministers of Justice (Budapest 1996, Chişinău 1999, London 2000, and Moscow 2001 respectively);
Having regard to the report on cost-effective measures taken by states to increase the efficiency of justice, prepared by the European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ) in consultation with the European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC);
Recalling the results achieved during the multilateral and bilateral legal co-operation activities carried out by the Council of Europe and its member states and convinced of the need for these results to be properly followed up through concrete legislative or other proposals aiming at improving the functioning of the judicial system;
Taking into account the work carried out by the various bodies of the Council of Europe in the field of the protection and promotion of human rights and the rule of law as regards the proper and efficient functioning of justice, in particular the work of the CDCJ, the CDPC, the Steering Committee on Human Rights (CDDH) and the Consultative Council of European Judges (CCJE);
Taking into account in particular the following principles:

I. Access to justice and proper and efficient functioning of courts
1. Access to justice
i. Access to justice shall be guaranteed in all cases concerning the determination of civil rights and obligations or of any criminal charges; legal advice and assistance shall be available when the interests of justice so require.
ii. To this end, the provisions contained in the relevant Council of Europe international legal instruments referred in Appendix II should, inter alia, be taken into account.

2. Efficiency of judicial proceedings
i. All necessary measures shall be taken to comply with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights by affording judicial proceedings within a reasonable time, whilst complying with the other guarantees of a fair trial. Consistent with that, steps should be taken to avoid undue delays in judicial proceedings and to reduce their cost.
ii. Efficiency of justice shall be guaranteed and, in order to do so, the provisions contained in the relevant Council of Europe international legal instruments referred to in Appendix II should, inter alia, be taken into account.
iii. Provisional, protective or any other urgent measures obtained by simple and rapid procedures should be available in order to provide interim solutions, which, although not final, ensure the effective protection of the rights of the parties or of third persons, as well as the efficiency of judicial proceedings.

3. Execution of court decisions
i. All judicial decisions shall be executed in an effective manner and within a reasonable time-limit.
ii. Bailiffs, where they exist, or any other execution agents, shall carry out their work according to the law, fairly, impartially, efficiently and transparently.

II. The status and role of the legal professionals
1. Judges
i. All necessary measures shall be taken to respect, protect and promote the independence and impartiality of judges and, at the same time, to ensure their efficiency and competence.
ii. To this end, the provisions contained in the relevant Recommendation referred to in Appendix II should, inter alia, be taken into account.

2. Public prosecutors
i. All necessary measures shall be taken to protect and promote the status and role of public prosecutors and, at the same time, to ensure their efficiency and competence, in order to enable them to perform their professional duties and responsibilities without unjustified interference.
ii. To this end, the provisions contained in the relevant Recommendation referred to in Appendix II should, inter alia, be taken into account.

3. Lawyers
i. All necessary measures shall be taken to allow the freedom of exercise of the profession of lawyer and, at the same time, to ensure lawyers’ competence and responsible conduct in judicial proceedings.
ii. To this end, the provisions contained in the relevant Recommendation referred to in Appendix II should, inter alia, be taken into account.

4. Training
i. Initial and on-going training is a right and a duty of all those involved in the judicial service and is an essential requirement for justice to fulfil its functions.
ii. Initial and on-going training of legal professionals shall be guaranteed, in particular by taking into account the relevant Council of Europe international legal instruments referred to in Appendix II.

III. Administration of justice and management of courts
i. The proper administration of justice and the effective management of courts is an essential condition for the proper functioning of the judicial system and requires, amongst others, adequate budgetary appropriations. Consideration should be given in this respect to the report on cost-effective measures taken by states to increase the efficiency of justice presented by the CDCJ and the CDPC to the 23rd Conference of European Ministers of Justice (London, 2000).
ii. In order to improve the administration of justice and the management of courts, the provisions contained in the relevant Council of Europe international legal instruments referred to in Appendix II should, inter alia, be taken into account.

IV. Use of information and communication technologies
i. The use of information and communication technologies shall be promoted in order to strengthen the efficiency of justice, in particular in order to facilitate access to justice, speed up court proceedings, improve the training of legal professionals, as well as the administration of justice and management of courts.
ii. To this end, the provisions contained in the relevant Council of Europe international legal instruments referred in Appendix II should, inter alia, be taken into account.

Resolve to establish the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) governed by the statute contained in Appendix I hereto. The CEPEJ shall work in close co-operation and co-ordination with the CDCJ.