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The adoption of the draft law is conditioned by the necessity to revise the remuneration system for the judges of the first instance courts and derives from guaranteeing the independence of the judge, as well as ensuring the attraction for highly qualified professionals in order to fill the existing vacant positions of the judges of the first instance courts. The RA Deputy Minister of Justice Levon Balyan said this during the debate of the draft law on Making Addenda to the Law on Remuneration for Persons Holding State Positions and State Service Positions.

The issue was debated in the first reading at the sitting of the NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs on September 28.

According to the key rapporteur, in accordance with Article 164.10 of the Constitution, a remuneration corresponding to the judge’s high status and responsibility is defined. Relations concerning the remuneration of the judges of the courts of first instance, including the amount of salary, are regulated by the above-mentioned law. However, according to the Deputy Minister, the amount of remuneration set for the judges of the first instance courts does not correspond to their status and responsibility.

It was noted that according to the results of the statistics, the judges of the first instance courts bear the biggest burden of workload in the three-level judicial system. As a result, according to Levon Balyan, there are already real risks in the judicial system in terms of the lack of desire and interest to fill the vacant positions of judges of the first instance courts by highly qualified specialists.

The Deputy Minister of Justice stated that the draft law proposes to set a 60% surcharge from January 1, 2024 for the judges of the court of general jurisdiction of the first instance, the Bankruptcy Court and the Administrative Court, ensuring the remuneration corresponding to the high status and responsibility of the judge.

The Deputy Minister also informed his colleagues that the salary of 206 judges will be increased.

The Chair of the NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs Vladimir Vardanyan expressed hope that the increase in the salaries of judges will have a positive effect on the reforms of the judicial system.

The co-rapporteur, the member of the Committee Lilit Minasyan, highlighting the adoption of the draft, mentioned that the development of the draft stems from the 2022-2026 strategy of judicial reforms, in which the aim is to ensure continuous reform of the judicial system.

As a result of debate, the legislative initiative was endorsed.