Ankara, April 2, 2012—The Ministry of Justice and the World Bank are hosting a two-day International Symposium in Ankara on Trends in Justice Reform across the Globe. The Symposium, organized at the request of the Ministry, aims to inform the review and update of Turkey’s Judicial Reform Strategy by bringing in expertise on various areas of judicial reform from different countries around the world.
Minister of Justice Sadullah Ergin; President of Council of State Hüseyin Karakullukçu; President of Court of Cassation Nazım Kaynak; President of Constitutional Court Haşim Kılıç are attending the Symposium.
In his opening remarks, Martin Raiser Country Director of the World Bank in Turkey said. “Well performing judicial institutions are a central element of modern market economies. They are critical for enforcing property rights and contracts and protecting the interests of all citizens. It is therefore most welcome that the Ministry of Justice has taken this initiative to bring together global experts on justice systems as an input into its own judicial reform process.”
In six different panel discussions various aspects of judicial reform and performance are reviewed with the participation of more than 20 experts from Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Italy, Japan, Slovenia, the Netherlands, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States of America as well as the United Nations and the Council of Europe.
Panel 1: Judicial Reform Developments In Turkey And Across The Globe- Justice systems worldwide are undergoing changes, many of them of systemic nature. This session highlights some of these developments across different continents and legal systems.
Panel 2: Justice Sector Performance Measurement And Quality Of Justice- Measuring and managing the performance of justice sector institutions is a decisive element for any strategic approach to improving the functioning of the justice sector. This session highlights country experiences that show how measuring the performance and quality of justice is part of a successful reform effort.
Panel 3: Judicial Budget And Court Administration- In times of economic and financial crisis, public sector budgets in general are under pressure. The same is true for judicial budgets across the globe. Courts are accountable to the public for making sound use of sometimes scarce public resources. This session is about country experiences that have developed different approaches to addressing their judicial budget constraints.
Panel 4: Judicial Ethics And Codes Of Conduct- The integrity of those working in the justice system is a key factor contributing to the fair delivery of quality judicial services to those seeking justice. The session is on the establishment of fair and transparent judicial accountability mechanisms as well as codes of conduct to provide clear guidance and rules for legal professionals.
Panel 5: Access To Justice (Legal Empowerment, Legal Aid And Education Of Clinical Law)- People in need of judicial services can face a series of obstacles when they try to access the courts. Some of them may relate to cost, others to distance, yet others to a lack of legal awareness, lack of availability of lawyers or inadequate legal aid schemes. The session is about ensuring access to justice as a fundamental function of the judicial system.
Panel 6: Alternative Dispute Resolution- Not all disputes should go to court. Some can be better settled through other dispute resolution mechanisms. Courts can get clogged when there is no sound balance between the need for access to the courts and a filtering mechanism for those disputes that should be settled outside the courts. Many countries have found ways to better align these different mechanisms and thus reduced congestion and inefficiencies in the court system.
The Symposium will close with a final panel discussion on Evaluation of the Future of the Judiciary in Turkey.
