On 13 November 2012, the UIHJ presented to the European Commission in Brussels the Six Stobra Projects of the Council of the European Presidents of the UIHJ to Harmonize the Profession of Judicial Officers and Civil Enforcement Proceedings in Europe
The Delegation of UIHJ, represented by its President, Leo Netten, its General Secretary, Francoise Andrieux, and its First Secretary, Mathieu Chardon, was received in Brussels by three representatives of the Directorate-General for Justice of the European Commission, Lotte Knudsen, Head of Directorate B Criminal Justice, Dick Heimans, Deputy Head of Unit Criminal Law and Heiko Wagner, Seconded National Expert, Judicial Training, B2
The Delegation of UIHJ explained the reasons that led to the creation of the Stobra projects, which are based on practical use of the CEPEJ Guidelines on enforcement and the profession of judicial officer in whose creation the UIHJ actively participated. The six Stobra projects have as a common objective to analyse the practices and laws in force in the Member States of the UIHJ in Europe but also beyond when required, in order to identify best practices and to elaborate UIHJ guidelines that states can make their own.
Lotte Knudsen congratulated the UIHJ for this practical and pragmatic approach and estimated that the example of Best Practices is an excellent way allowing countries to choose.
The Grand questionnaire of the UIHJ was also presented and discussed. The representatives of the European Commission showed great interest in this unique tool.
As regards training, a previous meeting was held at the European Commission in November 2011 with Lotte Knudsen. Françoise Andrieux recalled that training is a key area for the UIHJ since its inception. One of the statutory purposes of the UIHJ is the elevation of the profession of judicial officer, an elevation that cannot be achieved without training.
Françoise Andrieux recalled the position of the UIHJ and what actions were undertaken in this area, comprising the Training days of European judicial officers, including workshops on European instruments, reviews of case law and legislation or still the Vade Mecum on the cross-border service of documents, freely available on the website of the UIHJ. For several years, the UIHJ is also interested in the technique of e-Learning.
During the meeting, the representatives of the European Commission showed their enthusiasm for the Stobra projects, and its training component, they looked forward to continuing their collaboration with the UIHJ, indicating that the Commission wished to continue having a single, stable and reliable contact, a desire besides clearly expressed on the e-Justice Portal of the European Commission (
https://e-justice.europa.eu/content_legal_professions-29-en.do ).
