SUPREME COURT CHAIRMAN ON JUDGES' TRAINING, ETHICS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 TBILISI 002645

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/CARC

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/25/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL GG
SUBJECT: SUPREME COURT CHAIRMAN ON JUDGES' TRAINING, ETHICS
CODE

REF: A. TBILISI 767


B. TBILISI 1299

C. TBILISI 2131

Classified By: Ambassador John F. Tefft for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (U) Summary: The Chairman of the Supreme Court of
Georgia, Konstantin Kublashvili, recently updated Ambassador
on two milestones of judicial reform expected by the end of
October: enrolling students in the High School of Justice
(HSOJ) and approval by the Conference of Judges of an Ethics
Code for Judges. Kublashvili said that the staff has
incorporated provisions for rules on ex parte communications
to be included in the HSOJ curriculum. He readily admitted
that more needs to be done to inform the public of actual
progress on judicial reforms. He cited statistics to support
increasing judicial independence: out of 2700 cases heard so
far this year in first instance courts, private individuals
or firms prevailed over the government in 2000 of them. He
announced that he will be publishing statistics of the number
of disciplinary cases filed against judges to show how the
number of malfeasance cases is dropping. He expressed
appreciation for ABA/CEELI judicial training, and noted that
this has led to more efficient and expedient trials. End
Summary.


2. (U) On October 16, the Ambassador met with the Chairman
of the Supreme Court of Georgia, Konstantin Kublashvili, to
discuss opening the High School of Justice (HSOJ),
implementing the Ex Parte Communication Law, heightening
public awareness of judicial reforms and progress, training
for sitting and new judges, and clarifying a GoG grant of
land for an apartment building to the Judges' Association
(ref C).

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HSOJ -- It's Time for Class
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3. (U) Kublashvili told the Ambassador about the ongoing
competitive selection of judges, some of whom would
immediately be placed on the bench, and others who would
attend the HSOJ beginning at the end of October. He told
Ambassador that the school would start enrolling up to 20
students on October 29-31, and that the curriculum was ready
(refs A and B). New rules prohibiting ex parte
communications will be taught under the instructional block
entitled "Behavior of Judges." Two tests will be
administered during the 14-month course, with a final exam
upon completion. It is still undecided whether judges who
graduate will serve on magistrate courts or on city courts.
Currently, the plan is that judges will attend the HSOJ, sit
as judges for 2-3 years, and then receive lifetime
appointments. Kublashvili said that the Association of
Judges drafted an Ethics Code for Judges which he shared with
Ambassador. Besides the code, another element reinforcing
ethical behavior is changes to the Law on Discipline, as
recommended by the Venice Commission. Kublashvili told the
Ambassador that the association, the Judges of Georgia (JoG),
has approved an Ethics Code for Judges which will be
presented to the larger, 200 member Conference of Judges on
October 20. He anticipates that the code will be adopted
during this session. When the Ambassador asked how the JoG,
whose membership is voluntary, could enforce such a code,
Kublashvili replied that this is not an issue, because all
but 15 judges belong to it. Separate discussions after the
meeting clarified that inappropriate conduct by judges is to
be reported to the High Council of Judges, whose Disciplinary
Collegeum would decide on fines or more strict censure.

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Ex Parte Communications--Making an Impact
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4. (U) With regards to the impact of the new law
prohibiting ex parte communications with judges, Kublashvili
said it has been difficult to get the word out about its
requirements, despite their importance. Only half of the
most recent group of candidates for judge, had heard of the
law and knew its implications. However, as evidence of its
implementation among sitting judges, he stated that according
to what he has been told by a Tbilisi City Court judge, that
where that official had had 100 calls from prosecutors and
family members of the accused, he now receives only 10 calls,
all of which are from relatives and friends and none from
prosecutors. Kublashvili said that prosecutors know all too
well now what the consequences will be should they attempt to
communicate with judges outside the courtroom.

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A Taste of Judicial Reform for the Masses
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5. (U) Kublashvili recognized that more needs to be done to
inform the public about judicial reform. He said he is
considering organizing a conference in November to which the
diplomatic community and the press would be invited. There
he will share the High Council of Justice's criteria for
appointment of judges and for choosing which will receive
training at the HSOJ (ref B). He explained that under the
law, there are no specific criteria for these choices, so the
HSOJ established criteria after studying those used in other
countries. The Ambassador recommended that Kublashvili also
consider including information about the law on ex parte
communications and what it means for the average citizen, as
well as the meaning of the new Code of Ethics for Judges.
Both new steps will go a long way to improving public
perception and building confidence in the judiciary, he said.
Kublashvili highlighted plans to allow cameras into
courtrooms, responding to vociferous complaints by the media
in July, when a new law banned journalists from bringing
video equipment into the courtroom. He said the court is not
opposed to proceedings being filmed, but rather the
disruptive element that journalists inject whenever they are
permitted to do so. Kublashvili emphasized that while the
recordings would not be shared with everyone, if a question
is raised about the actual events during the proceedings,
documented footage could be provided to quash rumors of
improprieties. He said transparency is particularly needed
in high profile cases, such as that of Irakli Okruashvili,
and he thinks recordings will prevent conspiracy theories
from blossoming.

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Why Training Matters
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6. (U) Kublashvili thanked the Ambassador for training
provided by ABA/CEELI and said he would welcome opportunities
to incorporate intellectual property rights (IPR) into its
curriculum when the time is right. He recognized that poor
protection of IPR is not only an impediment for a Free Trade
Agreement between Georgia and the US, but it would impede
such agreements with other countries as well. He believes
the mock trials conducted by ABA/CEELI trainers to
familiarize judges and lawyers with the soon-to-be-introduced
jury trials was particularly helpful. Kublashvili added that
"Benchbooks" were particularly helpful to judges in making
sounder and speedier decisions. He said that out of 3,000
administrative cases this year, at all levels, the average
time for a trial to be completed is 17 months, which is
better than in most courts in Europe. Kublashvili stated
that the court hopes to use plea bargaining more often than
in the 51 percent of criminal cases in which it currently is
used. The Ambassador stressed that plea bargaining can be an
effective tool, but a defendant's plea must be ratified in
the presence of a judge, and there should be no perception of
coercion. The Ambassador asked for clarification of figures
that the Chairman had quoted to him during an earlier visit
with regards to percentage of cases won by private persons or
firms against the government. Kublashvili said in the first
six months of this year, there were 2700 cases filed in
courts of first instance by private citizens or firms against
government entities. Two thousand of these cases resulted in
judgments in favor of the citizen or firm. The implication
for Kublashvili is that private entities are getting a fairer
hearing, as measured by the number of cases they are winning.
He added that in tax cases, half were resolved in favor of
the taxpayer. With regards to corruption, he said that the
number of judges receiving disciplinary sanctions is
substantially less now than previously. This information
will soon be published in a brochure for public
dissemination. He agreed to provide the figures he quoted to
the Ambassador, along with a copy of the brochure, by October

26. The Ambassador underlined the importance of continuing
education for judges, and the necessity for judges to
enthusiastically embrace training in order to maintain their
professional qualifications.

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Apartments for Judges -- Overcome by Events
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7. (U) Kublashvili addressed concerns raised by some members
of the opposition about the transfer of land to the judges'
association, on which an apartment building is to be built,
in which judges will be allowed to purchase apartments at a
reduced cost for their own personal use (ref C). He said that
it was never planned that the government would give judges
land directly, but that the judges through their association,

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Temida, were to purchase apartments by taking out loans
through local banks. In the end, the judges ran out of time
to make such banking arrangements, and so the end result was
that neither land nor apartments were purchased. Kublashvili
told Ambassador that such arrangements exist for judges in
other European countries, and although there was controversy
over the anticipated purchases, it would not have been
without precedent. Ambassador stressed while such a plan
could technically have been within the legal framework,
judges are held to a higher standard and that the perception
was that they were receiving preferential treatment.

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Comment
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8. (C) Although the HSOJ has a curriculum and a plan to
implement the ex parte communications law, details concerning
the syllabi, assignment of tasks, and how those affected by
the ex parte communications law are informed about it are
still very fuzzy. While Kublashvili noted that students
would be registered at the HSOJ by the end of October, he did
not say that classes would start then. U.S. regional legal
experts assess the proposed Code of Ethics for Judges as
quite good, but the question remains whether the JoG has the
power to enforce it, especially against non-members. A new
wrinkle is the 2-3 year "probationary" period Kublashvili
discussed before which judges receive lifetime tenure in
their positions. While Kublashvili and his staff have indeed
met a number of milestones on the road to a fair, efficient
judiciary, more effort needs to be focused on informing the
public about what has been done. This could be done through
television and press conferences, but the message needs to be
reiterated often, loudly, and for more than one news cycle.
Post will continue to work with the HSOJ and the Supreme
Court to encourage them to open the HSOJ in October as
promised, and will push both organizations to formulate a
public campaign to share the accomplishment of these
significant milestones.
TEFFT