The Delegation of the Judicial Council of the Slovak Republic participating at the ENCJ General Assembly

The General Assembly of the European Network of Councils of the Judiciary is currently taking place in Rome and the Slovak delegation of the Judicial Council, composed of Marcela Kosová, President of the Judicial Council, and Ayše Pružinec Eren, member of the Judicial Council, is taking part in the meeting. The main theme of the three-day General Assembly is "Access to Justice", with a focus on vulnerable and disadvantaged people.

The first day of General Assembly was a closed session for memebrs of the ENCJ and took place in the premises of the Judicial Council of Italy (Consiglio Superiore della Magistratura) and its content was to ensure the functioning of the institution. During this session, the election of the new President of the ENCJ for the years 2024-2026 took place, in which Madeleine Mathieu, Advocate General of the Supreme Court of France (the Court of Cassation), was successful. One of the agenda items was the election of the members of the ENCJ Executive Board for 2024-2026 and the vote on the admission of new members of the network, which were the newly established Judicial Councils of Luxembourg and Cyprus.

As the aim of the ENCJ is to improve cooperation and mutual understanding between the judicial councils, judicial issues in the individual Member States of the European Union, in particular with regard to the status of judges, were also discussed. "The discussion was very open and in a friendly spirit of mutual respect. There was general agreement on the need for adequate remuneration of judges as part of the guarantee of their independence. The view was expressed by a number of colleagues that it is essential that the judiciary is truly recognised as a full partner of the executive and the legislature. There was a need to adopt a common statement on the issue," said Marcela Kosová, President of the Judicial Council of the Slovak Republic.

The ENCJ General Assembly delegation also met with the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, who is also the President of the Italian Judicial Council. The President received the delegation at his residence at Pallazzo Quirinale and praised the work and achievements of the ENCJ, which was founded in Rome and is now celebrating its twentieth anniversary.

The General Assembly of the ENCJ is held once a year to discuss basic, operational and procedural matters of the network. This year it is taking place from 12th June to 14th June. The Judicial Council of the Slovak Republic has been an active member of the European Network of Councils for the Judiciary since 2005.