Alternative dispute resolution was the focus of the Third Twinning of Lawyers

On 16 October 2021, the Third Twinning of Lawyers event took place, which was co-organised by the Council of Europe (CoE), the European Association of Lawyers (AEA-EAL), and the Chamber of Advocates of the Republic of Armenia. Its scientific part was dedicated to the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) as a means to reduce the burden on courts.

For the third time lawyers from Caucasus, Central Asia, Eastern and Western Europe and other countries gathered for a unique initiative – Twinning of Lawyers (https://twinningoflawyers.eu/), with the aim to strengthen the network of lawyers from different countries and jurisdictions, to exchange practices and experiences, and to become familiarised with the European standards, best practices and recommendations.

Among about a hundred participants, there were bars, lawyers’ professional associations, as well as ADR practitioners from 28 countries. The sessions of the discussion were contributed by the representatives of the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE), International Bar Association (IBA), International Association of Young Lawyers (AIJA) and Law Association for Asia and the Pacific (LawAsia).

The scientific part entitled “Disputes resolution mechanism – to reduce the burden on courts, and in consequence to improve access to justice” was dedicated to the challenges of workload in the court proceeding and ADR forms in the participating countries, ADR in the context of access to justice, and to the regulatory standards of ADR.

The international consultants presented and discussed the advantages and ethical challenges of ADR.

The presentation of Prof. Dr. Dr.h.c. Lorena Bachmaier, CoE international consultant, was dedicated to the relevance of ADR procedures from the perspective of a judge. She also mentioned an emerging tool of online dispute resolution (ODR). Full presentation here.

The CoE international consultant Dr Remigijus Jokubauskas spoke on the role of the Council of Europe in the development of ADR, in the context of ECHR Article 6 on the right to a fair trial, and standards on ADR introduced by the different bodies of the CoE (including respective recommendations of the Committee of Ministers and guidelines/toolkits of CEPEJ). He emphasized that ADR is regarded as a relevant dispute resolution mechanism, although it does not replace the court proceedings. The soft law documents prepared by CoE and CEPEJ aim to increase efficiency of mediation and to ensure that all the guarantees of the right to a fair trial are respected. Full presentation here.

“We are delighted to see that this event is so widely attended by representatives of bars and law societies of many countries. It once again reaffirms the interest and the need to enhance co-operation on developing alternative dispute resolution mechanisms”, said Ms Lilja Gretarsdottir, Head of the Cooperation Programmes Division of the Department for the Implementation of Human Rights of the CoE. “One of the aims of the Council of Europe in this regard is to reduce the unnecessary workload of national courts. This is important so that they can deliver timely and quality decisions, as required by Article 6 of the ECHR on the right to a fair trial. To this effect, the CoE provides technical support and implements co-operation activities that improve the effectiveness and expansion of the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanisms”, concluded Ms Gretarsdottir.

The Twinning of Lawyers event was co-organised by the CoE within the regional project “Strengthening the profession of lawyer in line with European standards” funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe within the framework of the Partnership for Good Governance. The Project is implemented in 5 countries – Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, and is focused on strengthening the cooperation between the bar associations and law societies of the participating countries with a view to improving the internal functioning and independence of the bars in accordance with the Council of Europe standards and recommendations.