Members of the CEPEJ Working Group discuss the judicial performance indicators
Within the first three months of the Project’s implementation, the Open Justice team led in the creation of two Working Groups to spearhead improvements on the existing Case Management System (CMS) and the new overarching Integrated Case Management System (ICMS) and enhanced judicial performance indicators. Both Working Groups include senior members representing the Superior Council of Magistracy, the Agency for Court Administration, judges, and court staff.
The main role of the ICMS Working Group is to provide recommendations to improve the legal framework amendments for ICMS and offer advice regarding the functional changes needed. The ICMS will strengthen court administration processes and systems in such areas as case flow management, the collection and use of court performance data, courts’ budgeting, and human resource development. The new ICMS will offer citizens easy access to various electronic services offered by the courts and to information about the courts and their performance.
Open Justice also supported the Superior Council of Magistracy in establishing a Working Group on implementing judicial performance indicators that are concurrent with the recommendations of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ).
Overall, the judiciary performance indicators serve as monitoring tools to evaluate different areas of the courts’ performance and provide reliable data for administrative decision-making. Among the most common indicators are cost per case, number of cases per judge, and duration of proceedings. Open Justice will make judiciary performance indicators available online, thus promoting the quality, transparency, accountability and accessibility of judicial statistics collected.
Working Group on ICMS convene upon the upgraded functionalities of the new IT system
The Working Groups proved to be an efficient mechanism for accomplishing results. Open Justice will be establishing similar Working Groups on court reorganization and optimization reform and on enhancing judicial nomination and promotion criteria.
