Remarks by Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk at an enlarged session of the Government with participation of judges of the Supreme Court of Ukraine on October 13, 2014

An independent judiciary branch is the pledge of protection of the rights of a human and a citizen.

Elimination of a telephone right, which unfortunately exists until nowadays, and influence on judges whether through an office of Prime Minister or through administration of President or through the budget, the judicial self-governance as a key element of judicial independence are the basic postulates, a truly fair and independent judicial branch should base on.

I would also like to acknowledge the role and place of the Supreme Court. It happened that in the process of a number of reforms carried out in Ukraine over the last decade, those who were engaged into implementation of court reforms missed to read a principal and key message expressed in the Constitution of Ukraine, the Supreme Court of Ukraine is the highest judicial authority.

Therefore, to our conviction, the new Parliament of Ukraine should return to the Supreme Court all the powers of the superior court body and all the powers to consider appeal cases just by the Supreme Court of Ukraine. It will be fair, honest, and most important – in the constitutional way.

When we talk about the attitude of people, it is just simple desire: we want a citizen who comes to our court, whether a municipal or a district or Supreme Court, could proudly utter the words "Your honor", could be aware that the judge will protect him, could feel that this is the place where he can come to complain, get protection, and that this protection will be based on law and justice.

On this way we have a lot to do. Mr. Chairman, distinguished members of the Supreme Court, we have similar problems both in the legislative branch and in government in general. The system of power is far from perfect. The authorities must gain trust: both judicial and executive authorities. If there is trust, if people believe, then this credit of trust can be transformed into changes, reforms, progress, and transformed into this power being effective.

On our joint way we have too many obstacles, as we have received such a heavy burden over the last two decades.

We ask today to discuss the draft law of Ukraine "On judicial system and the status of judges". And, in fact, we had a prior discussion on this issue with the President of the Supreme Court. As a citizen I’m personally surprised by the highest level of knowledge, depth, feelings and concerns of the Chairman of the Supreme Court. We now have to design the draft law, which will be supported by the new Parliament, which will be supported by the President of Ukraine and, the most important, the Ukrainian citizens need. The Ukrainians want to get the right to have a fair trial, as also the right to fair and decent executive authorities, as it all fits into the basic concepts of democracy. The democracy is, first of all, the law, execution of the law, punishment and the inevitability of such punishment for the failure to comply with this law. All the democratic societies are based on this.

Therefore, in the framework of our discussion let me tell about a few basic things, the Minister of Justice shall present for your consideration the draft Law "On the judicial system and the status of judges", but I would like to focus on certain basic things we offer for you to consider. We should hold a public discussion of this law together, then a broad discussion with the President of Ukraine, aftermath send the draft law to the Venice Commission in order to design one of the basic legislative acts on the functioning of the judicial system.

The first Ukrainian citizens need, in our opinion, is a guaranteed access to justice. In the first place just to come to court, to submit an application and to have this case considered. One of the main problems of today is that the application is sued, but it is returned based on the fact that the matter is not within the jurisdiction of this court. The bill of ours proposes that a court sends the claim to the appropriate court to help people, so they would not spend money on lawyers and would not waste time.

Second is to ensure openness and transparency of the very process. The draft law suggests the possibility of not only audio but also video recording of the process on the obligatory basis.

Third, we offer launching an "e-justice", as today the time is wasted, also enormous budgetary funds are spent and finally the dynamics of obtaining certain procedural documents is lost. That's why we offer in the law to provide for the possibility of electronic sending and receiving of documents and creating of a single registry.

One crucial issue I would like to focus your attention is the competency of the Supreme Court. We consider the basic element of a real judicial reform in the country should be resuming the powers of the Supreme Court of Ukraine and the right of citizens to have access to the Supreme Court of Ukraine, the right to appeal through the Supreme Court of Ukraine any relevant decision.

Concerning a role and place of the Supreme Court, we consider as necessary to return to the Supreme Court of Ukraine a right to consolidate judicial practice and carry out explanatory activity to lower-level courts regarding the application of certain provisions of the law.

With regards to the procedure of selection judges. The mentioned bill envisages a series of conceptual changes. First, we view as necessary to introduce competitive conditions to apply for the posts of judges in courts of various levels.

If the post is vacant, a judge has the right to submit his candidature for the competition and an independent judicial commission will decide whether to support him or not.

I would like to emphasize it is vital now to resume the trust of Ukraine’s citizens to the judicial branch? And it is necessary here to attract the public including to the selection of judges: the public organizations have to be attracted to observe and participate in the selection of a particular judge. This will only add credibility and confidence to both judges, and a judicial branch - that here can come only honest, fair people who can make decisions on behalf of Ukraine.

In the framework of our draft law there is a number of issues that introduce additional criteria to carry the checks of judges. I just remind that nowadays the judges don’t declare their incomes and expenses as is envisaged for the civil servants, and I am convinced there is no open access to the information on declarations. And I believe that it would be appropriate, if tomorrow the Parliament adopts an anti-corruption package, submitted by the President and the Government, which provides for the Declaration of incomes and expenses and access for the public to information contained in each Declaration, and if the same procedure will apply to judges. It also gives an additional level of confidence for the judiciary power.

Another important thing is the absence of a political component. I reiterate presidents change each other, premiers change each other, governments come and leave. One of the key, stable and unchanging foundations of a democratic government and a democratic state must be an independent and stable legal court. The less the politicians influence the judicial branch, the more rights, law and justice the country has.

In order to completely deprive the judicial branch of any political influence, we insist on transfer of powers to the judicial self-government. In particular to enable the judicial branch to participate in shaping the law of Ukraine on the state budget, as funding has always been a problem for the courts and the independence of the sources of funding and covering of necessary expenses for the judiciary appear additional elements of independence of the judiciary system as whole.

Our document envisages the possibility to set up qualification and disciplinary commissions by the council of judges from among the members of the public by draw.

Moreover, we see several promising things we would like to discuss today. We have analysed statistics, for instance, concerning economic courts. The volumes of financing for the economic courts are practically similar to those of general jurisdiction courts and the loading on the economic courts is only 3% of the total cases.

To the conviction of the Government, we consider that commercial courts should be abolished, and this function should be transferred to the courts of general jurisdiction. As Prime Minister I confess the idea that also through changes in the Constitution to combine economic and administrative courts under the vertical of courts of general jurisdiction, where the Supreme Court of Ukraine would be the higher and key institution of the judiciary.

With regard to the combination of the High Council of Justice and the High Qualification Commission, they should be combined into a respective single body to fulfill its constitutional function to ensure judges perform their functions, control over judges, their appointment and also to deprive of an element of political pressure on the judicial branch.

There is a series of things we have discussed with the Chairman of the Supreme Court of Ukraine how to reduce the burden on the courts. First and foremost we are talking about the withdrawal of the writ proceedings from the civil process and transfer of appropriate powers to notaries. Here required the revision of standards, enabling the authorities to take administrative claims against person.

We have analysed the statistics. The administrative courts should primarily protect citizens, however, 60% of cases of administrative courts are proceedings initiated by the authorities against citizens, instead of proceedings initiated by citizen against the authorities. We have something wrong in this issue.

Properly speaking, dear members of the Supreme Court and members of the Government, these are our basic approaches which the Government of Ukraine would like to report concerning upgrading a judicial branch. We expect tomorrow the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will endorse a new redaction of the law on the public prosecutor’s office. It had to be done 18 years ago, I mean to deprive prosecutor’s offices of a general supervision function, being post-Soviet corruption affected element.

I hope that tomorrow the members of the Parliament would support the appropriate changes and, finally, the Ukrainian Constitution and the law on public prosecutor's office will be compliant with principal standards of the European Union, in which the Prosecutor has no right to interfere in civilian life, to carry out its oversight role in relation to citizens and business, to Ukraine in whole, as it's not a characteristic function and, unfortunately, this function entails corruption.

I believe that a new composition of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will set to themselves a judicial reform as a key element of holding the reforms. Lacking fair courts a person doesn’t feel protected. If there are no fair courts, investors will never come. There are no fair courts, it is impossible to protect one’s property or moral law.

Hence, the basis of a strong society, the basis of investments and reforms is order of law that is directly associated with the judicial branch, which must be independent, strong, professional, fair and it is the branch of power much awaited by millions of Ukrainians. People want protection and our responsibility is to protect them. Competency of the Government is to protect socially, economically, to provide with jobs, salary. Competency of the judicial power is to protect them through law, legislation and justice.

I am confident that our joint efforts will yield results. We seek to enter the European Union, and therefore, the Ukrainian judicial system, the Ukrainian executive power should become exemplary. If we have a reform plan that we present today, and together will follow it, these reforms will have a direct reflection on the life of every Ukrainian, as our goal is the life of every person, his/her protection, confidence, trust in the power that must be deserved by us.

Thank you for your attention! I hope that in the process of our work we will discuss the bill and find an appropriate decision.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for an opportunity to address the assembly! Thanks the media!