YEREVAN. – The key issue, which will be regulated by the bill with respect to making amendments and additions to Armenia’s Judicial Code, is the external and internal independence of the country’s judges. 

The main speaker, Minister of Justice Davit Harutyunyan, on Wednesday stated about the above-said when introducing this bill at the National Assembly.

As per the minister, the second important point in this proposed law is the judges’ protection from investigative actions.

Harutyunyan added that this draft also envisions amendments that are aimed at increasing the efficiency of the judicial process in Armenia.

Also, the justice minister reflected on the number of judges in the country and noted as follows, in particular: “Armenia occupies last place among the Council of Europe [(CoE)] countries, in the number of judges per capita (…). [But] this doesn’t mean that we [Armenia] need to increase the number of [our] judges; this means that we need to find internal resources to increase their productiveness.

“But of course, in some cases, increasing the number [of judges in Armenia] should also be addressed.”