The justice system faces structural problems which have led to the accumulation of a large number of backlog of cases pending before the courts. In order to improve judicial performance, the Government of Cyprus has embarked on a very ambitious and holistic Courts’ Reform plan. The overall aim is to build a modern, accessible and efficient system for administering justice.
The reforms promoted are interlinked, forming parts of a coherent plan. Emphasis is given on measures to accelerate the delivery of justice and address the serious problem of backlog of cases. Important reforms include bringing the courts at pace with technological development through the e-justice and digital audio recording projects, the implementation of which is currently underway. The introduction of the new Rules of Civil Procedure adopted by the Supreme Court in May 2021, for cases submitted as from September 2023, is also expected to have a significant impact on the efficiency of the courts. Through the establishment of an efficient court service, on the basis of the results of a study, the management structure of the courts and administrative processes of registries will be modernised and strengthened. Training of judges on a continuous basis, with emphasis on the implementation of the new Rules and the new e-justice system, is a prerequisite for the successful implementation of these reforms and for sustaining the quality of the justice system. Other important reforms include the restructuring of the courts and the establishment of specialised Courts, such as the Commercial Court, Admiralty Court and the Court of Appeal, for which the legislation was recently enacted.
Some of the measures taken are included in the Recovery and Resilience Programme of Cyprus.
(1) One of the most significant reforms promoted relates to the revision of the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR). The project was undertaken by a team of international experts who worked in close cooperation with the Rules Committee set up by the Supreme Court. The revised Rules underwent consultation with the Judge’s association and the Cyprus Bar Association, before being approved by the Supreme Court on 19 May 2021. The project was concluded in December 2021.
The Cyprus Judicial Training School has already provided the first sets of training to judges, registrars, legal officers and other court staff on the new CPRs in 2021 and 2022 under the Project SRSP3. The training curriculum has been developed for 2023, as well.
It is noted that a commitment has been undertaken by the Supreme Court within the framework of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP), for the implementation of the new Rules of Civil Procedure for the new cases submitted to the court as from 1.9.2023.
(2) The clearance of the backlog of delayed cases which have accumulated in the courts, is a very critical and pressing task in the reform process. In order to facilitate this project, 32 new posts to increase the general capacity of the judicial system were approved by the House of Representatives as part of the State Budget since 2019. Following several recruitment procedures, a number of judges was appointed since today.
In September 2020, a pilot project was initiated in the District Court of Paphos through the temporary assignment of a “task force” of seven experienced judges to handle the backlog of cases. The project was expanded in September 2021 to cover all other districts.
Within the framework of the Recovery and Resilience Plan, a commitment has been undertaken for the reduction of the backlog of cases and appeals pending for over two years before the Districts Courts and the Supreme Court - by 20% by Q2 2024 from the 31 December 2020 level and by 40% by Q2 2026 from the 31 December 2020 level, as verified by an annual progress report. To this end, an action plan was prepared with specific timelines/targets. Furthermore, a project manager - an ex-President of the Supreme Court - has been appointed to monitor and coordinate the backlog project.
(3) The introduction of new technologies in the Justice system is a prerequisite for increasing the efficiency of courts. In this context, the digitalisation of the courts is being promoted, with the implementation of e-justice and the digital audio recording (DAR) of minutes during trials.
The implementation of the e-justice system is now underway and within the timelines defined. The project will also be financed by the Recovery and Resilience Plan. By the beginning of 2023, the development and installation of the system will be completed and the e-justice system will go live.
It is noted that the intermediate i-justice system is used on a national basis as of 21 July 2021 which provides for digital filing and administration of Courts’ cases.
The introduction of Digital Audio Recording in courts will further enhance the efficiency and quality of operations. The project is also included in the RRP and according to the commitment undertaken, the installation and full operation of digital audio recording in court proceedings is expected by Q1 2025.
(4) A major component of judicial reform which is expected to contribute significantly towards the enhancement of the efficiency of the courts, is the restructuring of the courts and the establishment of specialised Courts.
An important reform of the Cyprus Judiciary is the enactment of the laws (i) establishing of a Court of Appeal dealing with civil, criminal and administrative cases at second instance (16 Judges) and (ii) providing for the operation of the two supreme courts, namely the Supreme Constitutional Court (composed of 9 judges) and the Supreme Court (composed of 7 Judges), granting of additional third-degree jurisdiction to these two courts. These courts will become operative within the next year (1/7/2023). The implementation of these reforms, especially in relation to the establishment of the Court of Appeal, will greatly facilitate the implementation of the backlog project.
Also, with the same laws, (i) a Judicial Advisory Council has been established to act consultatively to the President of the Republic for the appointment of judges to the Supreme Constitutional Court and to the Supreme Court, respectively and (ii) the composition of the Supreme Council of Judicature has been expanded to include the Attorney General, the President of the Cyprus Bar Association and two further advocates of highest professional level, holding the qualifications for appointment as judges of the Supreme Court. The advocates are appointed on the recommendations of the Cyprus Bar Association and upon approval of the Supreme Court.
Another important reform is the establishment of a Commercial and Admiralty Courts, to provide an appropriate forum for the determination of high-profile high-value commercial cases and admiralty cases, respectively. These two courts are expected to become operational within the next year.
(5) The reform programme will require significant changes in the way courts operate and are managed. The capacity must therefore be strengthened in order to fully exploit the potential arising from these initiatives. Besides the recruitment of additional judges, three projects which have been implemented or are underway, will contribute to this end:
A Training School for Judges has been established following the enactment of the relevant Laws (14.8. 2020). This development formalises training and will contribute to the ongoing and regular training of judges, as it is now envisaged that Judges are obligated to go through life-long training. The establishment of the Training School for Judges is of vital importance for safeguarding the high quality of the Justice system. It is expected that the School of Judges will enable them to deepen their knowledge and gain even more expertise in new areas of law that emerge.
According to the commitment undertaken within the framework of the RRP, at least 110 judges have to complete by Q4 2025 annual trainings on new Civil Procedure Rules and / or other judicial trainings on various legal topics and judicial skills, according to the training needs of the judiciary and guidelines from the EC. This target was not only met/ accomplished, but it was also exceeded, since to date 114 judges have been trained on Civil Procedure Rules and for the rest of the subjects, most judges have attended more than two seminars in 2022.
Following a study carried out by experts which was funded by DG REFORM of the European Commission, the Supreme Court published in July 2019 criteria for the recruitment of judges and in October 2019 criteria for the promotion of judges. All new appointments/ promotions are now based on these new criteria.
A new project underway relates to the establishment of a new modern and efficient Courts Service, responsible for all aspects of management, administration and support of the courts. The new project which is funded by DG Reform of the European Commission covers, inter alia, aspects relating to the organisational and governance structure of the new Courts Service, the re-engineering of procedures and staffing requirements. The study will be delivered on January 2023. The recommendations of the study will be examined by the relevant government Ministries and the Supreme Court and a decision will be taken as to the best organizational structure to be adopted.