On 11-12 September 2023, the Judicial Training Centre, a body affiliated with the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Slovenia, hosted the second meeting of EJTN’s Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms Sub-Working Group (HFR SWG) in 2023.
The event was attended by representatives from 14 judicial training institutions and the European Academy of Law. The main goal was to assess the implementation of EJTN’s 2023 training programmes in the area of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
Judicial training experts also worked on the upcoming 2024 training catalogue of training activities for European judges, prosecutors, court and prosecution staff and judicial trainers. The new catalogue, which is currently in preparation, will build on the lessons learnt during 2023, as well as the training needs assessment, which is based on suggestions made by participants, EJTN Members, Associate Members, Observers, Partners, and the European Commission.
Ideas on how to further improve EJTN training activities in human rights and fundamental freedoms were also put forward by key EJTN partners in this area, including the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, the European Court of Human Rights, the Council of Europe’s Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals Project and the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology.
Ms Blanka Javorac Završek, Director of the Slovenian Judicial Training Centre, coordinated and chaired the meeting, allowing the attendees to share their perspectives on innovative judicial training techniques and to foster bilateral cooperation between judicial training institutions.
EJTN participating members
• Academy of European Law
• Austria – Federal Ministry of Justice
• Bulgaria – National Institute of Justice
• Croatia – Judicial Academy of Croatia
• France – National School for the Judiciary
• Germany – Ministry of Justice
• Greece – National School of Judiciary
• Hungary – Office of the Prosecutor General
• Italy – Superior School for the Judiciary
• Latvia – Latvian Judicial Training Centre
• Malta – Court Services Agency
• Poland – National School of Judiciary and Public Prosecution
• Portugal – Centre for Judicial Studies
• Slovenia – Judicial Training Centre
• Spain – Centre for Legal Studies
• Spain – Judicial School of the General Council of the Judiciary
Note for editors
Launched in 2017, EJTN’s Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms Sub-Working Group develops judicial training activities for European judges, prosecutors, court and prosecution staff and judicial trainers.
These activities allow practitioners to discuss the most crucial and recent developments in human rights and fundamental freedoms at the European and EU level. Participants gain valuable insight from leading experts and can share experiences and views on domestic legislation with their European counterparts.
This sub-working group develops joint seminars and trainings in cooperation with EJTN’s external partners, such as the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, the European Court of Human Rights, the Council of Europe’s Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals Project (HELP), the Association of European Administrative Judges and the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology.
In 2023, the HFR SWG has organized eight training seminars and is going to implement four more. This year, a special advanced webinar on Cultural Diversity was added to create a synergy with the EJTN one-week study visit to the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology in Halle, Germany.
For more information on the HFR SWG’s activities in 2024, please click here.
