On July 28, Group for Legal and Political Studies (GLPS) organized a Roundtable Discussion on the topic: “Establishing the Commercial Court in Kosovo: the need, challenges and expectations”, held in Pristina. The aim of this event was to discuss the need to establish a Commercial Court, accompanying problems of establishing such court, proposed regulation, and its impact on the justice system in Kosovo, as well as challenges, and the way forward.

At the beginning of the discussion, GLPS presented a Policy Analysis titled: “More Harm than Good: An Analysis of the Proposal to Establish a Commercial Court in Kosovo”. The analysis addresses the current legal framework of the regular courts in the country, with special emphasis on the Department of Economic Affairs and the Department of Administrative Affairs, the findings of the Functional Review of the Justice System in Kosovo, the current draft law on commercial court, and argues the position that such a court would not be able to address the problems identified. Furthermore, the analysis provides a set of recommendations for a commercial justice, which could improve the current situation in handling commercial cases in the country.

“GLPS considers that a Commercial Court in Kosovo would cause more harm than good”, said Ms. Hoxha Zhuja, the author of the report. During her presentation, in addition to the key factors, she also provided two alternatives that would avoid establishing such a court, which is considered unnecessary. For a detailed elaboration, the report can be accessed here.

First to address the audience was Mr. Driton Selmanaj, the first vice-chair of the parliamentary Committee on Legislation, coming from the LDK. He stated that their parliamentary group was against establishing such a court in Kosovo, since the initial idea was presented. “We consider that a Commercial Court will not fix the problem of commercial disputes in Kosovo, and such a court will not add value to shortening the timeline of the efficiency of courts in dealing with commercial cases”, he added. Also, he noted that it is not clear yet whether the government can allocate the necessary financial means to establish such mechanism, despite considering it a top priority.

On the other hand, Mr. Visar Morina, a professor at the Faculty of Law in Pristina said that there is no proper analysis which provides a solid reasoning behind establishing such court in Kosovo. “There is an evident need to further specialize judges and prosecutors in their field of expertise, however, the jurisdiction of this court, if established, should be clearly defined”, he concluded.

The panelists congratulated GLPS for publishing a detailed analysis on the pros and cons for the establishment of the Commercial Court in Kosovo.

Panelist:

Mr. Driton SELMANAJ – First Vice-President, Committee on Legislation, Assembly of Kosovo;

Mr. Visar MORINA – Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Prishtina;

Mr. Urim VOKSHI  – Lawyer, Kosovo Bar Association;

Ms. Rreze HOXHA ZHUJA – Author of the Report, GLPS.

Venue: Hotel Sirius (Str. Agim Ramadani, 10000 Pristina, Kosovo)