The bill on “special judges” is under criticism again: lawyers claim it is unconstitutional

National Bar Association of Ukraine opposed the initiative

The National Bar Association of Ukraine (NAAU) criticized draft law No. 15084, which provides for the introduction of exclusive specialization of judges to consider certain categories of criminal cases.

According to the bar community, the proposed changes do not comply with the constitutional principles of justice and may create systemic problems in judicial practice.

What is the essence of the draft law

The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has registered draft law No. 15084, which provides for amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine.

The document proposes:

consideration of cases on war crimes exclusively by specialized judges

application of this norm also to crimes against peace, security of humanity and international law and order

mandatory participation of a specialized judge as the presiding judge in the panel

The changes are planned to be made to Article 31 of the CPC, which determines the composition of the court.

Authors’ arguments: workload and war

The initiators of the bill explain the need for changes by the significant workload on the judicial system.

This concerns over 220 thousand criminal proceedings related to war crimes and the crime of aggression. In their opinion, the specialization of judges will allow:

to increase the efficiency of case consideration
to provide proper professional training
to strengthen the trust of military personnel in the judicial system
The lawyers’ position: contradiction with the Constitution

The NAAU emphasizes that even in times of war, legislative changes must comply with the principle of the rule of law.

The lawyers note that the Constitution of Ukraine already defines the principles of building a judicial system – territoriality and specialization, which are regulated by the current law on the judiciary.

The introduction of “exclusive” specialization, in their opinion, may upset the balance of the judicial system.

Doubts about the “trust” argument

The NAAU also critically assessed the argument about increasing trust in judges.

Lawyers emphasize that issues of impartiality are already regulated by the norms of the CPC, in particular, the mechanisms for disqualifying judges (Articles 75 and 80), and do not require the creation of separate categories of judges.

Risks of expanded application

The lawyers drew special attention to the fact that the draft law covers a wider list of crimes than just military ones.

In particular, this concerns the articles of Chapters XIX and XX of the Criminal Code, where some offenses do not provide for a special subject – a military serviceman.

This, according to lawyers, creates additional legal conflicts.

Conclusion and further fate of the draft law

The NAAU concluded that the draft law has systemic contradictions and cannot be adopted in the proposed wording.

The association has already sent the corresponding position to the relevant committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on law enforcement, which is working on the document.