On Monday, 3 March, the Chairman of the Judicial Council Aigars Strupišs, the Chairman of the Judicial Candidates Selection Commission, Senator of the Supreme Court Dzintra Balta, a member of the Judicial Qualification Board, Riga City Court Judge Sanita Strakše and the Director of the Judicial Administration Andris Munda met with the judges of the Riga District Court to discuss current issues of the Judicial Council and the work of the courts.
On 1 March 2015, the Riga District Court was joined by the Sigulda Court, and on 1 August 2015 - by the Jūrmala City Court. Baiba Abele, Deputy President of the Riga District Court, provided information on the timeframes for handling cases at the Riga District Court before and after the reform, as well as highlighted the benefits of the reform - optimisation of resources, faster timeframes for handling cases and improvement of the efficiency of the judicial system.
Aigars Strupišs informed the judges of the Riga District Court about the work carried out by the Judicial Council in the past year and the activities planned for this year. The transition of the administrative support functions of the judiciary from the executive to the judiciary is planned to be implemented and enshrined in the Law "On Judicial Power". It is also planned to attract new staff with legal qualifications to the judicial system, improving the standards and remuneration system for support staff and strengthening the role of the Judicial Academy.
Dzintra Balta discussed with the judges the selection procedure and stressed that most of the applicants do not pass the basic professional knowledge test, which is conducted in the second round of selection. However, the number of failures in subsequent rounds is lower, but the main obstacle to further progress is the inability to independently solve legal problems. At the same time, the Judicial Council is considering the possibility of launching a selection procedure within the competence of the Court of General Jurisdiction, separately for the civil and criminal specialisations, in order to increase the number of applicants. The President of the Judicial Council stressed that the shortage of judges with specialisation in criminal matters is particularly pronounced, therefore the Judicial Council plans to look for long-term solutions to improve the organisation of court work and the issue of specialisation of judges.
Sanita Strakše discussed with the judges of the Riga District Court the process of evaluation of a judge's professional activity, as well as the procedure for evaluation when a judge moves to a regional court. Sanita Strakše stressed that the aim of the evaluation of judges is not to find mistakes in their work, but to objectively assess their professional performance. At the same time, the skills and information taken into account by the Judicial Qualification Board in the evaluation process were discussed.
The judges of the Riga District Court pointed out that there is a shortage of qualified staff in the courts, therefore the issue of training of court staff needs to be addressed. The judges stressed that this issue is important as they have to devote a significant part of their working time to train court staff on both technical and legal issues. Andris Munda, Director of the Judicial Administration, informed that video trainings have been developed for assistant judges and secretaries, and the Judicial Academy is planning to organise trainings for court staff to improve their qualification.
The judges of the Riga District Court also stressed the need to strengthen security in the courts, as well as to take measures to ensure the protection of judges in the performance of their professional duties. This is essential to guarantee the independence of judges and protect them from external influence, pressure or illegal activities.