The Rule of Law Promotes Economic Investment
The Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation jointly with the Foundation for International Law Forum of St. Petersburg organized in the majestic city of St. Petersburg the first legal forum of its kind. Our colleague Bernard Menut, 1st Vice-President of the UIHJ, as personal guest of Alexander Konovalo, the Federal Minister of Justice, has actively participated in this major international event that strengthened the presence and intervention of the President the Russian Federation, Dmitri Medvedev.
Organizers had hoped that our international organization would make its proposals under one of the six panels. The first vice-president Bernard UIHJ Menut, regular interlocutor of the Ministry of Justice and the judiciary Russian represented the UIHJ at this forum where the excellent material organization of the very high scientific standard was noticed by everyone in attendance.
A Very Ambitious Forum Open to the World
The forum aimed to bring together the best experts in the legal and economic field to exchange and find solutions to make the system more economically efficient in terms of development, through an economic law analysis.
The forum is a platform for Russian public authorities but also for other countries to engage in a dialogue with representatives of all economic sectors, whether from Russia or other countries. This dialogue should be aimed at modernizing the legal system of Russia in the light of trends in the Russian economy but also global.
The forum organizers had in mind the promotion of all ideas to modernize the law by constantly adapting it to current developments in the world economy. This must be shown by a heightened cooperation between different legal systems, modernization of the Russian law in terms of best practices in legislative drafting. We must raise Russian legislation to international standards to protect the rights and interests of investors. Finally, a special effort should be made towards legal studies in Russia.
The annual nature of the forum should ultimately make it a place of reflection and creation, a legal laboratory open to the world economy - a "legal Davos" in some way.
A Weak Rule of Law Weakens the State
President Dmitry Medvedev stressed to an audience of over 600 people, the role that the law must have as an instrument for innovation and securing development in a globalized economy. Referring to Russia he indicated that a country where the rule of law is weak regresses economically and legally. In line with this statement, he signed a decree that morning to assess enforcement laws in Russia, which should result in the publication of an annual report, a true performance indicator of the Russian legislation. The performance counter will be installed in the Russian courts.
He announced various measures to help including compliance with court decisions, improving the effectiveness of the law, including the enforcement of court decisions from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), stressing the judicial officers had a key role to implement judicial decisions, citizens' rights which are violated if the court decisions are not effective.
At the time of concluding his remarks he called to initiate a genuine dialogue between politicians, lawyers, law professors and business communities.
The Judicial Officer Partner in Economic Development
Our colleague Bernard Menut intervened in the first of the six panels, namely the one on "Justice and security of businesses: modern instruments to enhance the accessibility and efficiency of justice and alternative measures of conflict resolution".
For years the UIHJ insists that the judicial officer is at the heart of the economy and that its intervention before or after obtaining a judicial title acknowledging the claim would protect investors. Based on Recommendation 17 of the Council of Europe, but also on the guidelines published in December 2009 by the same Council of Europe for this recommendation, Bernard Menut showed how the enforcement of judicial decisions was a key element of the Rule of Law, but also the state economy. There can be indeed no balanced economic development and economic growth if the judiciary is fallow and if court decisions remain unheeded. He insisted particularly on the fact that if the state wants the economic development it cannot get it without developing the judicial sector, by providing, as recommended besides by the Council of Europe Guidelines, appropriate and sufficient means to carry out its missions. Material resources may lack sorely in some countries as justice comes often last on the state budgets priorities, but the technical, fast and adapted procedures, access to information on assets are tools that the enforcement agent must have available and with no restriction.
The Judicial Officer secures Economic Investment
Mr Menut showed during his speech that without legal security, without any real implementation in a reasonable time, it is the whole edifice of Justice which collapses, together with the economy. Recent economic and financial crises have highlighted the need for securing national and international investments. The judicial officer is directly involved in economic and legal security of investors, key elements of economic growth. Funds recovered by judicial officers create cash flow for investors and entrepreneurs can invest again. In accelerating this process by making it more fluid, with adapted procedural means, the law makers may also assist and secure investment.
