The twentieth conference of presidents of courts in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) was held in Teslić, organized by the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HJPC BiH) with the financial support of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
During the conference, cases of corruption, organized crime and cases of public importance were discussed, as well as the most important indicators for the judicial system of BiH according to the indicators of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ) from the Report for the countries of the Western Balkans region for the year 2025.
In his opening address, the President of the HJPC of BiH, Sanin Bogunić, spoke about the activities that the HJPC of BiH undertook in order to improve the efficiency and quality of the work of the courts in BiH and, in reference to the conference topics, he emphasized the importance of the strategic approach of the HJPC of BiH to the issue of solving cases of corruption and organized crime, through the adoption of concrete measures, conclusions and policies aimed at improving the work of courts and prosecutor’s offices, as well as the importance of the full involvement of the entire judiciary in order to solve these cases.
These are the 11 conclusions that were adopted at the Conference of Presidents of Courts in Bosnia and Herzegovina:
- The presidents of the courts are invited to, in cooperation with the presidents of the councils, continuously monitor the correct and consistent application of the institute of status conference, and the maintenance of continuous trials and procedural discipline with the aim of more efficient proceedings and reducing the duration of the main trial in cases of organized crime and corruption.
- It is necessary that the presidents of the courts, in cooperation with the presidents of the departments, direct special attention to the quality of work and decisions in all stages of the procedure.
- With the aim of improving efficiency, quality and quantity of work, court presidents are expected to adopt a strategic and proactive approach in court management, adequate distribution of resources and efficient organization of the work of non-judicial staff, with special emphasis on cases of corruption and organized crime.
- Assigning a special status to criminal cases that require priority resolution, and reducing the workload of judges on other cases while working on priority cases, would be one of the mechanisms that would enable their more efficient resolution.
- The importance of continuous cooperation between the HJPC of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the courts and bodies of the executive and legislative authorities is emphasized in order to fulfill the basic assumptions for the engagement of the optimal number of judicial and non-judicial personnel in the courts.
- The HJPC of BiH welcomes the efforts of the judicial community aimed at improving the efficiency and quality of court work.
- The HJPC of BiH welcomes the efforts of judges and court presidents who, during the previous period, were focused on solving the oldest pending cases.
- The HJPC of BiH expresses concern regarding individual cases of untimely handling of the oldest cases in the courts, especially bearing in mind the right of the parties to a fair trial within a reasonable time.
- In the coming period, the HJPC of Bosnia and Herzegovina will especially monitor the resolution of the oldest cases from the case resolution plans, and in this connection will undertake activities prescribed by law.
- The HJPC of BiH calls on the presidents of the courts to intensify cooperation with the competent ministries of the interior, regarding the increased flow of misdemeanor cases in the courts and the untimely submission of misdemeanor orders for processing.
- The HJPC of BiH is available to the judicial community for any type of cooperation and coordinated approach, in terms of achieving optimal work results.
