Judges' Association: Judiciary is 'surviving at the limit of its capacity' after 2025 report

The Association of Judges described the Judicial Council's 2025 report on court performance as alarming and urged immediate, systemic measures to strengthen staffing, funding and digitalisation across the judiciary.

According to the Association, the report shows that shortages of judges, court administration staff and financial resources are seriously hampering the justice system's ability to operate effectively and deliver timely rulings to citizens.

Priorities and international guidance

The Association warned that legal reforms alone will not improve conditions if they are not backed by resources and functional solutions. "The figures in the report show that normative changes, unless accompanied by adequate resources, staffing reinforcement and functional solutions, not only fail to guarantee improvement, but do not prevent further deterioration of the situation," the statement said.

As immediate priorities the association listed a review of the court network, the digitalisation of court procedures including application of artificial intelligence, professionalisation and staffing of the court administration, and predictable, adequate court budgeting. The statement also noted that international support for the rule of law has already identified concrete directions for improvement.

The judges' group stressed that, despite limited resources, judges continue to work on cases and reduce backlogs, but that independent and efficient courts require proper working conditions and coordinated action by responsible institutions. "Justice cannot be effective without judges, without a professional court service and without adequate resources. The judiciary must not be left to survive at the limit of its capacity while it is expected to fulfil all obligations to the state and citizens," the Association said.

The Association expressed readiness to take an active part in processes to improve the judicial system. The Association also highlighted comments from Kambovski that the shortage of judges and personnel reduces courts' performance and efficiency.

Photo: press material from the event