Two Draft Laws with Significant Impact on Judicial Reform Adopted in First Reading

On January 13, 2015, Parliament of Ukraine adopted in the first reading two draft laws relating to judicial reform:

1) draft law No. 1497 ( “On Amending the Law of Ukraine on the Judiciary and Status of Judges (concerning improvements in principles of organization and functioning of the judicial power in line with European standards)” introduced by a group of Parliament members. A reference note concerning the implementation of European institutions’ recommendations can be found at this link.

2) draft law No. 1656 “On Ensuring the Right to a Fair Trial” introduced by the President of Ukraine.

Substantially, the two draft laws are alternatives to each other. They also diverge in their manner of integration of European standards. By accepting both drafts as the basis, Parliament of Ukraine decided to set up a working group charged with preparing a single, consistent draft law for second reading.