Abolition of courtrooms: what changes for Ukrainians?

On December 19, 2024, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted Draft Law No. 9445, which introduces significant changes to the judicial system. In particular, the institute of a meeting room has been abolished in civil, commercial and administrative proceedings. Instead, a new institution was introduced – “secrecy of court decision-making”. The law is intended to make the process of making court decisions more efficient and transparent.

Let’s see how these changes will affect the work of courts and the lives of citizens.

What is a “meeting room” and why was it canceled?

Previously, judges used to move to a deliberation room, a separate room where they discussed and made decisions after the debate was over. This was believed to ensure the objectivity and independence of the judicial process.

However, in practice, this often delayed the consideration of cases. Some decisions were announced several days or even weeks after the debate. Legislators decided that such regulation was excessive and that the process could be simplified without compromising the quality of decisions.

Now, deliberation rooms have been abolished in civil, commercial, and administrative proceedings. Instead, decisions can be made in any courtroom, which simplifies the procedure.

Main innovations

1. The secrecy of a court decision

Judges are now obliged not to disclose the course of deliberations or details of the decision. This concept has replaced the “secrecy of the deliberation room” that was a key element of the previous procedure.

2. Announcement of the decision-making stage

At the end of the court arguments, the judge will announce when the decision will be made and announced. In exceptional cases, where the case is complex, the announcement may be postponed, but not for more than 10 days.

3. Solutions without a meeting room

Judges will make decisions directly in the courtroom. This can be any courtroom, but discussions with other persons outside the court are prohibited.

4. Faster process

Judgments, rulings and resolutions must be drafted, signed and announced immediately after the case is completed. If this is not possible, the judge may announce an abbreviated version of the decision (introductory and operative parts) and prepare the full text within 5-10 days.

What does this mean for citizens?

For ordinary Ukrainians, these changes could be an important step towards speeding up court proceedings. Instead of waiting weeks for the results, the court’s decision will be available immediately after the hearing or within a specified time frame.

In addition, clear timelines for the announcement of decisions reduce the risk of abuse, when judges could delay the process for biased reasons.

What processes have remained unchanged?

It is worth noting that the abolition of the meeting rooms did not affect criminal cases and cases of administrative offenses. In these processes, the institute of a conference room remains in force.

To introduce similar changes to the criminal process, a separate draft law No. 9446 is required, which has not yet been considered. Therefore, decision-making in criminal cases continues to be governed by the previous rules.

Benefits and challenges of the new approach

The abolition of meeting rooms has a number of advantages:

• Speed. The decision-making process will become faster.
• Transparency. There is no longer a need to send judges to a meeting room, which reduces the risk of manipulation.
• Clarity for participants in the process. Participants in court hearings will know the exact time and date of the decision announcement.

However, there are also challenges:

• The lack of clear regulation of the place of decision-making may cause confusion in practice.
• Judges may experience greater psychological pressure, as decision-making will now take place in rooms accessible to outsiders.

The law will come into force 30 days after its official publication. This means that starting from the beginning of 2025, trials in commercial, civil and administrative cases will be conducted in accordance with the new rules.

The new rules will be applied to cases already underway. Thus, the abolition of deliberation rooms may have an immediate impact on the judicial process in many cases.

The abolition of the institute of the deliberation room is an important step towards the modernization of Ukraine’s judicial system. Although the reform has its drawbacks, it is aimed at speeding up the judicial process and increasing its transparency. For ordinary citizens, this means faster decisions and fewer delays in cases.

Time will tell how effectively these changes will be implemented in practice, but one thing is certain: the reform demonstrates Ukraine’s readiness to change outdated procedures and move closer to European standards of justice.