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The High Council of Justice must lay a bridge between the citizens, the magistrates and the political world in order to restore the confidence in Justice again. |
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The High Council of Justice, which came into being in the turmoil of the affair D., was set up in response to a strong citizens’ movement and to the expression of the political will to modernise the workings of the machinery of our judicial system. |
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Composed of judges and lay members, it plays an important role in the Belgian institutional landscape by organising the selection of judges, by exercising external control over the operation of the judicial system and by making recommendations and delivering opinions. |
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| The High Council of Justice supports the modernisation of a judicial system whose organisation and operation, which are very coded, are still all too often not properly understood by citizens. |
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| The High Council of Justice will continue to follow a quality policy in recruiting and selecting judges. There is a need to be bold and to target qualities such as listening and interpersonal skills and respect for persons who are to be tried, victims and society alike. There is also a need to engage in reflection on improvement of the tools in place.
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| External communication, reaching out to citizens, particularly through this website, is of prime importance.
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| Internal dialogue amongst members of the High Council of Justice – judges, lawyers and representatives of civil society – is the guarantor of support for sustained ongoing improvement of the operation of the judicial system.
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| May this Council make the best possible use of comparison of good practice at European level to ensure that the Belgian judicial system develops and thus provides a better service for all citizens seeking justice, in whatever capacity.
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Jean-Luc COTTYN
President |
