COURT ADMINISTRATION TRAINING

JUSTICE SYSTEM REFORM ACTIVITY IN KOSOVO

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JUSTICE SYSTEM REFORM ACTIVITY IN KOSOVO

TRAINING ON COURT REPORTING
SKILLS FOR JOURNALISTS

USAID's Justice System Reform Activity in Kosovo (JSRAK) discovered through its polling that the vast majority of the Kosovars rely on the media for information, including information on the justice system. In effort to achieve accurate media reporting on issues related to justice sector, JSRAK has made it a priority to provide training to journalists on the justice system.

The first training seminar for journalists took place on April 8 and was conducted by Dr. Enver Hasani, Professor of Law at the University of Pristina. Twenty journalists were in attendance. Dr. Hasani lectured on the legal framework of Kosovo, the Kosovo court structure, and the role of the Kosovo Judicial Council. In addition, Dr. Hasani led discussion of the current reform activities within the justice sector. The second and third training seminars took place on April 22 and 29, and were carried out by Mr. Haki Lecaj, a former District Courtjudge and trainer at the Kosovo Judicial Institute for bar exam training. Mr. Lecaj outlined the proceedings that take place in different courts, the parties involved in various proceedings, and the role of the public prosecutor.

In an effort to correct currentdeficiencies in reporting, the seminars emphasized the appropriate use and meaning of legal terminology. The training of journalists is an important step in USAID's efforts to ensure transparency in the dissemination of information. Transparency is viewed askey to increasing public trust in the judiciary.

COURT ADMINISTRATION TRAINING: CONTRIBUTING TO
THE MODERNIZATION OF THE JUDICIARY

According to a U.S.-based professional organization, there exist ten core competencies that define what court leaders need to know and be able to do. The National Association for Court Management, a 2500 member organization of professional court managers and administrators with world wide membership, has identified these competencies in Curriculum Guidelines.

To bring this curriculum to Kosovo, the Justice System Reform Activity in Kosovo selected four of the most important competencies as subjects of a four-module training series, taking place in the first half of 2006. The chosen subjects are Human Resources Management Principles, Budget and Financial Management in the Courts, Caseflow Management/Delay Reduction, and Information Technology in the Courts Each of these modules was designed to introduce court managers, president judges, and court administrators to the basic principles of each competency. This program will also provide a foundation upon which the attendees can base activities to improve the management of their courts.

In the Budget and Financial Management in the Courts seminar
attendees were provided a strategy format on how to develop and present budget requests for their organizations. Each group was tasked to develop their strategy and to report it to all attendees. One presiding judge stated that this workshop had provided him with a whole different and better way in which to view and to deal with issues of budget preparation, justification and management.

To date, more than forty president judges, administrators, Ministry of Justice officials, and representatives from the Kosovo Judicial Council, Kosovo Judicial Institute, and the Department of Judicial Administration have attended the first three core competencies modules in 2006.

Each seminar program included hands-on work in small groups to allow attendees to identify issues pertinent to their courts and to collaborate with others to identify ways in which to address those issues that need to be resolved.