Welcoming court staff in the Exchange Programme

Monday, 28 February 2022

As of 2022, court staff can take part in the different activities of the Exchange Programme, thus becoming fully part of the group of EU beneficiaries of its training offer. While it is clear who judges, prosecutors and judicial trainers are, it is sometime difficult to identify which functions are included in the notion “court staff”.

In line with EJTN Strategic Plan 2021-2027, judges and prosecutors are excluded from the court staff audience – they have indeed already dedicated activities focusing on their training needs. EJTN further defines court staff as “persons working in courts and prosecution authorities where they form part of the “corps judiciaire”, who are not judges or prosecutors, and who have legal training and who either: a. Help prepare judgments or prosecutorial decisions; b. Make judicial or prosecutorial decisions at least at a preliminary phase; or c. Play a significant role in cross-border judicial cooperation. The group functions of court staff – as defined in the Study on the training needs of court staff on EU law in the EU and its annexes – also prove to be a good tool to identify court staff in the EU judiciaries.

The Exchange Programme team is looking forward to welcoming court staff falling under the above definition within its study visits with the European institutions and courts as well as general, trainers, bilateral and regional exchanges.

Don’t wait! Apply now to the regional exchanges to develop an in-depth cooperation with your neighbouring EU court or prosecution office, or discover more about the Exchange Programme full training offer!