Submission of report on examination of court cases within reasonable time limits and ensuring of the right to a public trial

During a discussion on the 2023-2024 Report on "Justice with Open Eyes", Advisor to the Minister of Justice Liana Tovmasyan emphasised that the Ministry constantly co-operates with civil society in the sector of judicial-legal reforms, providing the opportunity to ensure transparency and accountability of the sector-specific reforms in practice. During the discussion, importance was attached to the report recapping the results of monitoring the court sessions conducted through the use of a specially developed methodology, aimed at gathering reliable data on ensuring the right to public trial within a reasonable time limit. The issues recorded as a result of monitoring the work of the courts of Yerevan and marzes — presented in the report, and the recommendations for addressing those issues, were the particular subject of discussion. It was stated that the issues raised will help the Ministry of Justice to develop a more fact-based policy. At the same time, it was stated that the Ministry of Justice intends to address the recorded issues through a number of initiatives. Development of court standards and bringing logistical conditions in line with international standards, conduct of research to determine the required number of judges, as well as legislative and digitisation reforms were also touched upon. The report was prepared by Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor, within the scope of the Project “Integrity of Justice Reforms”.