OSCE Mission prepares graduate lawyers from northern Kosovo for bar exam

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo is organizing a series of training courses for graduate lawyers from northern Kosovo to help them prepare for the bar exam given by the Ministry of Justice.

The bar examination in Kosovo is conducted four times a year to determine whether a candidate is qualified to practice law.

Seven training sessions, running from mid-October to the end of November 2016, for around 30 graduates cover all topics of the exam, including constitutional law, criminal law, civil law, family law, as well as laws on inheritance; contracts and torts; administrative law, commercial law, and labour law.

Lectures on the practical aspects of each topic, including the organization of the judicial system and human rights protection, are being delivered by five prominent Kosovo Serb lawyers and judges.

“This training will help increase the number of practising lawyers in the north, which will result in an improved access to justice for all people in Kosovo,” said Jan Braathu, Head of OSCE Mission in Kosovo.

In addition to the preparatory training, around 15 participants without working experience will be offered a chance to work within the central and local institutional framework to gain the necessary experience required for taking the bar exam.

The initiative is part of the OSCE’s efforts to facilitate the implementation of the Brussels Agreement between Belgrade and Prishtinë/Priština for the integration of the judiciary in northern Kosovo.

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo is mandated with human rights and communities rights protection and promotion, democratization and public safety sector development. The Mission supports the justice system in Kosovo and runs programmatic activities aiming to improve its performance.