Lessons Learned and Recommendations from the USAID New Justice Program Study Visit to the High Council for the Judiciary of Portugal on Judicial Self-Governance Operations

The program aimed to strengthen judicial independence and self-governance, as well as enhance the administration of justice. The HCJ's new functions were envisioned in the Constitution and the Law on the High Council of Justice. The New Justice Program supported the HCJ in developing its institutional capacity and promoting its independence and accountability. The program's objectives included strengthening the HCJ's role in promoting and protecting judicial independence, as well as enhancing the administration of justice. A study visit to the Portuguese High Council of the Judiciary (Conselho Superior da Magistratura – CSM) took place from May 16 to 20, 2017. The visit aimed to familiarize the HCJ members and representatives of the HCJ Secretariat with the CSM's experience and activities. The Ukrainian delegation learned about the CSM's status and activities, with a particular focus on strategic planning, organizational structure, internal procedures, and case-management. The CSM is a constitutional authority that promotes and guarantees the principles of judicial independence and accountability. The CSM's functions include appointment, transfer, promotion, remuneration, evaluation, and bringing judges and prosecutors to disciplinary liability. The CSM secures its financial autonomy through preparation of its own budget, which is subject to approval by the Parliament. The CSM also has the competence to issue opinions on legal acts related to the judiciary and the Statute of Judges. The CSM has efficient systems for judicial evaluation and bringing judges to disciplinary liability. Evaluation of judges is conducted on a permanent basis, and depending on the grade received by the judge, the next evaluation may be scheduled in 6 months or 3 years. Judicial inspectors are highly respected officials who are selected from among judges of appellate courts with at least 15 years of professional experience. Their role is to prevent unethical and inappropriate behavior of judges and conduct investigations of such misconducts. The CSM has at its disposal a dashboard reflecting the performance of each individual judge. In case of a delay in proceedings, a CSM member or judicial inspector may contact the chief-judge and ask to pay attention to the delay and ensure that the judge has all necessary means to deliver justice in a timely and professional manner. The Supreme Court of Justice of Portugal is the most efficient court of cassation in Europe, with an average duration of court proceedings of three to four months before the final decision is rendered. The Court of Sintra implemented the electronic court system for all cases, except for criminal ones, where parties can submit electronic documents, receive electronic notifications and documents through personal cabinets they can enter using their identification document. Court users can register for attending court sessions or schedule a meeting with court staff even remotely, so they do not have to wait in queues. An integrated platform for all courts and judicial institutions makes it possible to speed up the information sharing process and ensures transparency of operations. Based on the study visit, several recommendations were made to the HCJ. Firstly, the HCJ should develop an effective system for preventing judicial misconducts and raising judges' awareness of the current judicial discipline practice as part of the legislative framework for disciplinary liability of judges. Secondly, the HCJ should consider creating a possibility for citizens to file complaints of judicial misconduct in the electronic form. Thirdly, the HCJ should develop electronic tools for monitoring adherence to judicial conduct standards by judges and a dashboard reflecting the performance of individual judges. The HCJ should also develop a regulation/instruction on conducting investigations of judicial misconduct based on the provided examples in Portugal in order to promote objectivity and transparency of judicial disciplinary procedure. Furthermore, the HCJ should promote the role of judicial inspectors as independent officials who investigate judicial misconduct complaints in a due process. The HCJ should also develop a manual for judicial inspectors on peculiarities of investigations of judicial misconducts and implement initial and ongoing training programs for them. In addition, the HCJ should improve cooperation with European institutions dealing with matters related to the HCJ's functions and promote integration in the European judicial community. This will allow the Ukrainian Judiciary to have a permanent dialogue with the European community aimed at implementing recent innovations in Ukraine and making the judicial reform sustainable. The HCJ should also prepare a strategy for automation of courts and judicial institutions and consider the IUDEX system used in Portugal as an example of the electronic platform for judges. The HCJ should develop a judge's personal cabinet on the judicial platform, which will include individual performance information, upcoming deadlines of proceedings, and respective reminders as part of the court automation process. The HCJ should also develop and implement an integrated judicial platform for courts and judicial institutions, including the HCJ, High Qualifications Commission of Judges of Ukraine, State Judicial Administration, National School of Judges, and Council of Judges of Ukraine. The platform should simplify the documents flow, promote transparency and access to information, and develop a unified database of the judiciary. Finally, the HCJ should consider the CSM's construction solutions and experience in organizing the