Justice Minister and Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia mark the start of phase two of ministry capacity building project: EU for Justice – Support for Chapter 23

On 1 December, Minister of Justice Maja Popović and Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia, Ambassador Sem Fabrizi held a Zoom meeting about the continuation of the Strengthening the Capacities of the Ministry of Justice in line with the Requirements of the EU Accession Negotiation Process Project, through phase II of the EU for Justice – Support for Chapter 23 Project.

On the occasion, Minister Popović noted that the said project was one of many projects through which the EU had been supporting the strengthening of the rule of law in Serbia, and thus, served as a prime example of cooperation built on the principle of partnership. However, she said that the absolute priority of its foreign policy was (the necessity) to become a full member of the EU.

Minister Popović explained that ‘our objective is not the membership of itself nor meeting the technical requirements defined in the negotiating chapters, but the strengthening of a modern state built on the rule of law, that is the creation of a future credible and successful member of the EU. Such a foundation undoubtedly depends on the efficiency of the sector of the judicature which most enjoys the public trust, and it is to that end that the EU for Justice – Support for Chapter 23 Project is being implemented.’

Minister Popović added that in the upcoming period, the Ministry of Justice would continue working on the accelerated harmonisation of the national legislation with the acquis as well as securing the necessary funds and developing institutional framework for their implementation. That includes continuing the initiated process of amending the highest legal act of the Republic of Serbia and the set of related laws on the organisation of the judicature, as a matter of priority. ‘The most important steps of this process will be discussed as part of the constant dialogue with the community of experts, the public, civil society organisations and the media’, Minister Popović stated.

The Ministry of Justice has an exceptionally important role in this process, which comes with an added responsibility of paying closer attention and being committed to steering and coordinating the all-encompassing reform of the rule of law — an area in which the support of international partners is invaluable, particularly when bearing in mind the great results which can be achieved by joint action. In that regard, ‘the Project, which we formally extended by signatures today, helps the Ministry of Justice in the crucial segments of the reform process: the normative framework, the information and communications technologies (ICT), and that which concerns the new coordination mechanism for the revised Chapter 23 Action Plan implementation monitoring’, Minister Popović said.

Regarding the first segment of the reform process, the EU for Justice – Support for Chapter 23 Project provided great support to the Ministry of Justice over the past two years. Phase II of the Project should support the monitoring of the implementation of the amended legal framework pertaining to enforcement and security as well as the drafting of the new Court Experts, Interpreters and Translators Act, and the modernising of the Civil Procedure Act and the Public Notaries Act along with related bylaws.

As for the second segment, the Project is to help the simultaneous development of useful ICT solutions that are two new registers — a register of power-of-attorney which is to facilitate an efficient and remote (or dislocated) conducting of legal affairs through a power of attorney, and a register of wills — and the final automatisation of judicial review triggered by complaints by parties to a case.

Through Project support, a Secretariat and a Coordination Body for the Implementation of Action Plan 23 are to be formed and their work promoted — all for the purpose of achieving greater coordination, monitoring and reporting on the Action Plan 23 implementation. These efforts will include promoting cooperation with the civil society as part of the overall process.

At the end of the meeting, Minister Popović stressed that the rule of law was at the core of the EU-accession negotiations process of every candidate country because without progress in Chapter 23 there could be no progress in the negotiations process.

Having signed off on phase II of the EU for Justice – Support for Chapter 23 Project together with Minister Popović during the online signing ceremony, Ambassador Fabrizi stated that Serbia, by joining forces with the EU, was making progress on its course to joining the EU and implementing reforms which were in the interest of its citizens. ’By strengthening the capacities of the Ministry of Justice, we are helping Serbia to achieve progress in the rule of law’, Ambassador Fabrizi concluded.

The EU for Justice – Support for Chapter 23 Project has three components: 1. Normative framework and standards (support to the Ministry of Justice in improving the normative framework and standards through greater alignment of key laws with the acquis communautaire); 2. IT infrastructure/e-Justice (strengthening the capacities of the Ministry of Justice in e-judiciary through ICT expertise); and 3. Ministry of Justice-led coordination, monitoring and reporting on the Action Plan 23 Implementation. The combined value of the Project is 3.98 million euros in donor funds, whereas the value of phase II of the EU for Justice – Support for Chapter 23 Project is set at 2 million euros.