EU Project Pravo-Justice continues holding seminars on the Law on Administrative Procedure for administrative court judges

EU Project Pravo-Justice together with the Cassation Administrative Court within the Supreme Court continues providing support and assistance in training administrative court judges on how to apply the novelties of the Law of Ukraine On Administrative Procedure (LAP).

On November 21, in Vinnytsia, EU Project Pravo-Justice held a seminar together with its international partners from EU4PAR and the German Foundation for International Legal Cooperation. The event was attended by the justices of the Cassation Administrative Court within the Supreme Court, district court judges, judges of the Seventh Appelate Administrative Court of Vinnytsia and Pravo-Justice experts.

This is the second round of the seminars planned for administrative court judges regarding the novelties of the Law of Ukraine On Administrative Procedure. The first round took place in Lviv in mid-September.

Vitalii Kuzmyshyn, President of the Seventh Appeal Administrative Court in Vinnytsia noted:

“Our meeting is a landmark one: we aim to discuss the important issue of legislative amendments. Right now, our country is facing tough times; we are getting an even deeper understanding of how important progressive steps in legislation are because this is a characteristic of a democratic state with the rule of law. At the same time, legislative amendments bring Ukraine closer to EU countries in which similar laws have been valid for a long time.”

Oksana Tsymbrivska, Country Manager of EU Project Pravo-Justice highlighted the importance of the Law On Administrative Procedure for Ukraine’s path towards European integration:

“Without LAP, Ukraine used to be the only country in Europe that did not have such a law. By granting Ukraine candidate status, the European Union confirmed that Ukraine meets the Copenhagen criteria for membership as to ensuring the right to good governance. After all, the relationship between the citizen and the authorities and local self-government should be based on unwavering observance of human rights, which, among other things, is ensured by general administrative procedure.”

During the event, Viktor Tymoshchuk, EU Project Pravo-Justice expert and Andrii Shkolyk, EU4PAR expert familiarized the judges with the key terminology of the Law, principles, features of initiating and preparing for considering an administrative case, its consideration and resolution.

Learn more about the topic from the presentation “Novelties of the Law of Ukraine On Administrative Procedure“ and from the handbook on general administrative procedure.

As regards potential challenges on the way to implementing the Law, Olesia Radyshevska and Volodymyr Bevzenko, justices of the Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court drew their colleagues’ attention to the following potential challenges: alternative forms of protecting the infringed right, the relationship between the LAP and legislation governing specific subject matters, terminology unification, the relationship between the principles of the Code of Administrative Procedure and LAP, etc.

Edith Zeller, judge of the Administrative Court of Vienna and EU Project Pravo-Justice expert together with Martin Steinküler, judge of the German Federal Administrative Court, spoke about the international experience of applying the unified law on administrative procedure.

The Law of Ukraine On Administrative Procedure is to enter into force on December 15, 2023. In course of the discussion, the seminar attendants agreed that any potential delay of the entry into force of the Law is impractical and highly undesirable, both in view of the objective need to have the general administrative procedure and in view of the obligations Ukraine undertook before the EU.

The seminars like the ones already held in Lviv and Vinnytsia are aimed at shaping a common understanding among judges as to the gist of the amendments to the Law and timely and high-quality preparation for its entry into force in December 2023.

EU Project Pravo-Justice will continue holding such seminars for other appellate administrative districts.

The Seventh Appeal Administrative Court of Vinnytsia suppored the Vinnytsia seminar.