The Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Azerbaijan
Category: Plenum of the supreme court19.02.2021 14:19
Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Azerbaijan was held under the presidency of Mr. Ramiz Rzayev on 19 February 2021.
Opening the plenary session, Mr. Ramiz Rzayev noted that 2020 has been marked with a number of notable events. The most important of these being the liberation of our lands by the courageous Azerbaijani army under the leadership of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev following 30 years of the enemy occupation. This victory has further united our people and strengthened our national solidarity. For giving us feeling of pride, we thank the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, every soldier and officer of our armed forces, and bow our heads before the souls of our martyrs.
A number of works has been carried out in connection with the implementation of the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan “On deepening reforms in the judicial and legal system” dated 3 April 2019, which is an integral part of the judicial reforms implemented last year. In accordance with the Decree, major laws have been enacted, including the policy of humanizing punishment and expanding the provision of electronic services under quarantine conditions and the use of modern information and communication technologies and electronic administration in legal proceedings.
In 2020, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) affecting the world has left its mark on the judiciary in Azerbaijan much like on all other spheres of life. Based on the relevant decisions of the Cabinet of Ministers, the consideration of pending cases had been adjourned several times, except for cases that did not need to be urgently heard in a court of law for a certain period of time or did not require a court hearing. The Supreme Court has issued, on several occasions, recommendations on how to conduct judicial proceedings during the coronavirus pandemic.
Along with other problems, this crisis enabled the judicial system to face new challenges of seeking alternative ways of ensuring that the justice system works in crisis situations. For this, new approaches should be developed in crisis situations for the management of the courts and the administration of justice in accordance with fundamental principles where the traditional functioning of the courts is not possible.
In spite of 2020 being a year full of limitations due to the coronavirus disease and certain delays in the consideration of cases, the Supreme Court has continued its work uninterruptedly.
The Registry of the Supreme Court has stood out positively in 2020. With a view of ensuring the establishment of a unified practice of application by the courts of national legislation and international law governing the protection of human rights, the Supreme Court takes periodic measures within its competencies. For this purpose, the Supreme Court continued its work on unification of judicial practice in different legal areas in 2020, as well as simultaneously monitoring judicial activity on some issues. More than 400 draft legal acts on amendments and additions to the legislations have been thoroughly examined, and respective legal opinions have been issued.
In 2020, the Supreme Court has received 23,878 applications from government agencies and directly from citizens, which have been accordingly considered or resolved. As a result of the measures taken to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease in the Republic of Azerbaijan, starting from March of 2020 reception of citizens in person has been suspended and the reception has been taking place via other alternative means. During this period, the President, Vice-President and the Presidents of the Chambers have received 230 individuals, including 153 people in the regions. During the reception, each citizen has been carefully listened to, explanations have been given on the issues raised, as well as relevant instructions have been given to the relevant officials of the Supreme Court who participated in the reception on the submitted applications.
Since the Republic of Azerbaijan has acceded to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the case law of the European Court of Human Rights plays a vital role for the legal system of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The requirements for the judicial work of the courts have been improved. In this regard, it is important that judges administering justice grasp the norms of international law, international standards in the field of human rights and the practice of their application. In 2018, the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan has become a member of the “Superior Courts Network” (SCN) of the European Court of Human Rights. This network is intended to establish a platform for the exchange of information between the courts designated by the member states of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and for ensuring uniform and correct application of the provisions of the European Convention and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights by the national courts in the administration of justice. On 30 November 2020, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the “CEELI Institute” jointly organized a conference on “Management of judicial activity during the pandemic” with the participation of the Presidents of the Supreme Courts of Central and Eastern Europe.
The Supreme Court constantly updates its website. This website publishes decisions of the Plenum of the Supreme Court and other Chambers. Every citizen and member of the media can get detailed information about the work of the Supreme Court. Statements regarding the Second Patriotic War have been complied and published on the website of the Supreme Court. The interactive “Karabakh is Azerbaijan!” section created on the website of the Supreme Court was designed in Azerbaijani and has been translated into Russian and English, as well as published in various social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter. Important work has been undertaken to improve, modernize and ensure information security of the “Electronic Judicial Information System” and the existing information technology infrastructure of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Annual reports on the status of justice in 2020 given by the Presidents of the Chambers of the Supreme Court were heard in the Plenum.
Each report was extensively discussed and analyzed.
A number of cases in the Supreme Court in 2020 has decreased in comparison with the corresponding period of 2019. For that reason, there was a decrease of the caseload by 34,6 percent in the Civil Chamber, a decrease of 47,4 percent in the Commercial Chamber, a decrease of 29,5 percent in the Administrative Chamber and a decrease of 41 percent in the Criminal Chamber. In general, the number of cases filed with the Supreme Court decreased by 29,9 percent.
While the Plenum heard 21 cases in 2019, only 16 cases were heard in 2020.
The number of applications to the Supreme Court has also decreased. All of these reductions are attributed to the ongoing pandemic in Azerbaijan.
In addition, the speakers reported that there was a significant change in the quality of performances of the Chambers in 2020.
The statistics of the reversed court decisions show that the quality of decisions among the lower courts has improved compared to previous years.
It was noted at the Plenum that 4 employees of the Supreme Court have been appointed as judges.
The Plenum has approved the Supreme Court’s work plan for 2021.
Relevant decisions have been made following the discussion of the matters at the Plenum.
Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Azerbaijan was held under the presidency of Mr. Ramiz Rzayev on 19 February 2021.
Opening the plenary session, Mr. Ramiz Rzayev noted that 2020 has been marked with a number of notable events. The most important of these being the liberation of our lands by the courageous Azerbaijani army under the leadership of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev following 30 years of the enemy occupation. This victory has further united our people and strengthened our national solidarity. For giving us feeling of pride, we thank the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, every soldier and officer of our armed forces, and bow our heads before the souls of our martyrs.
A number of works has been carried out in connection with the implementation of the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan “On deepening reforms in the judicial and legal system” dated 3 April 2019, which is an integral part of the judicial reforms implemented last year. In accordance with the Decree, major laws have been enacted, including the policy of humanizing punishment and expanding the provision of electronic services under quarantine conditions and the use of modern information and communication technologies and electronic administration in legal proceedings.
In 2020, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) affecting the world has left its mark on the judiciary in Azerbaijan much like on all other spheres of life. Based on the relevant decisions of the Cabinet of Ministers, the consideration of pending cases had been adjourned several times, except for cases that did not need to be urgently heard in a court of law for a certain period of time or did not require a court hearing. The Supreme Court has issued, on several occasions, recommendations on how to conduct judicial proceedings during the coronavirus pandemic.
Along with other problems, this crisis enabled the judicial system to face new challenges of seeking alternative ways of ensuring that the justice system works in crisis situations. For this, new approaches should be developed in crisis situations for the management of the courts and the administration of justice in accordance with fundamental principles where the traditional functioning of the courts is not possible.
In spite of 2020 being a year full of limitations due to the coronavirus disease and certain delays in the consideration of cases, the Supreme Court has continued its work uninterruptedly.
The Registry of the Supreme Court has stood out positively in 2020. With a view of ensuring the establishment of a unified practice of application by the courts of national legislation and international law governing the protection of human rights, the Supreme Court takes periodic measures within its competencies. For this purpose, the Supreme Court continued its work on unification of judicial practice in different legal areas in 2020, as well as simultaneously monitoring judicial activity on some issues. More than 400 draft legal acts on amendments and additions to the legislations have been thoroughly examined, and respective legal opinions have been issued.
In 2020, the Supreme Court has received 23,878 applications from government agencies and directly from citizens, which have been accordingly considered or resolved. As a result of the measures taken to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease in the Republic of Azerbaijan, starting from March of 2020 reception of citizens in person has been suspended and the reception has been taking place via other alternative means. During this period, the President, Vice-President and the Presidents of the Chambers have received 230 individuals, including 153 people in the regions. During the reception, each citizen has been carefully listened to, explanations have been given on the issues raised, as well as relevant instructions have been given to the relevant officials of the Supreme Court who participated in the reception on the submitted applications.
Since the Republic of Azerbaijan has acceded to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the case law of the European Court of Human Rights plays a vital role for the legal system of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The requirements for the judicial work of the courts have been improved. In this regard, it is important that judges administering justice grasp the norms of international law, international standards in the field of human rights and the practice of their application. In 2018, the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan has become a member of the “Superior Courts Network” (SCN) of the European Court of Human Rights. This network is intended to establish a platform for the exchange of information between the courts designated by the member states of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and for ensuring uniform and correct application of the provisions of the European Convention and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights by the national courts in the administration of justice. On 30 November 2020, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the “CEELI Institute” jointly organized a conference on “Management of judicial activity during the pandemic” with the participation of the Presidents of the Supreme Courts of Central and Eastern Europe.
The Supreme Court constantly updates its website. This website publishes decisions of the Plenum of the Supreme Court and other Chambers. Every citizen and member of the media can get detailed information about the work of the Supreme Court. Statements regarding the Second Patriotic War have been complied and published on the website of the Supreme Court. The interactive “Karabakh is Azerbaijan!” section created on the website of the Supreme Court was designed in Azerbaijani and has been translated into Russian and English, as well as published in various social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter. Important work has been undertaken to improve, modernize and ensure information security of the “Electronic Judicial Information System” and the existing information technology infrastructure of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Annual reports on the status of justice in 2020 given by the Presidents of the Chambers of the Supreme Court were heard in the Plenum.
Each report was extensively discussed and analyzed.
A number of cases in the Supreme Court in 2020 has decreased in comparison with the corresponding period of 2019. For that reason, there was a decrease of the caseload by 34,6 percent in the Civil Chamber, a decrease of 47,4 percent in the Commercial Chamber, a decrease of 29,5 percent in the Administrative Chamber and a decrease of 41 percent in the Criminal Chamber. In general, the number of cases filed with the Supreme Court decreased by 29,9 percent.
While the Plenum heard 21 cases in 2019, only 16 cases were heard in 2020.
The number of applications to the Supreme Court has also decreased. All of these reductions are attributed to the ongoing pandemic in Azerbaijan.
In addition, the speakers reported that there was a significant change in the quality of performances of the Chambers in 2020.
The statistics of the reversed court decisions show that the quality of decisions among the lower courts has improved compared to previous years.
It was noted at the Plenum that 4 employees of the Supreme Court have been appointed as judges.
The Plenum has approved the Supreme Court’s work plan for 2021.
Relevant decisions have been made following the discussion of the matters at the Plenum.
With that, the Plenum concluded its work.