Safeguards for judicial independence in administrative justice discussed at OSCE/ODIHR expert meeting
Challenges and good practices in safeguarding the judicial independence of administrative courts and tribunals across the OSCE region were the focus of an expert meeting organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) in Warsaw on 22 November 2018.
The meeting brought together a group of practitioners and independent experts (seven women and seven men). They discussed the key challenges and good practices in safeguarding the independence of judges in the context of various institutional frameworks for judicial review of administrative decisions across the OSCE region. The challenges and good practices were reviewed in relation to judicial self-governance and the separation of powers.
“Judicial independence, especially in the field of administrative justice, is a pre-requisite for holding governments accountable for acts and decisions against private persons which might affect their enjoyment of fundamental rights and freedoms,” said Marta Achler, Acting Deputy Head of ODIHR’s Democratization Department. “It is important for the rule of law that the reform of institutional frameworks with respect to administrative justice adequately safeguards judicial independence.”
Edith Zeller, President of the Association of European Administrative Judges, said: “Today’s discussions between administrative judges, experts from academia and ODIHR, as an expert institution, are extremely important. They shed light on basic requirements for independent judicial systems in a very structured way and fundamentally support the aims and the work of our Association.”
Both administrative justice and judicial independence are core areas of focus for ODIHR as part of its mandate to support participating States in upholding their rule of law-related commitments.
Previous ODIHR work in the area of administrative justice has included the publication of the Handbook on Monitoring Administrative Justice in partnership with the Folke Bernadotte Academy and the training of rule of law professionals engaged in monitoring judicial review of administrative decisions.