I have great pleasure in introducing you to the first issue of the Council of Europe’s Legal Co-operation Division’s newsletter. It will be of no surprise that this issue examines the many ways in which Council of Europe committees, working in this field, continue to work through the pandemic, and focuses primarily on the latest legal standards they have developed. Take a look, for instance, at the achievements of the European Committee on Legal Co-operation (CDCJ), and the CDCJ Chair and experts’ insights regarding the two sets of guidelines adopted by the Committee of Ministers on the efficiency and effectiveness of legal aid schemes, and on online dispute resolution mechanisms, in the areas of civil and administrative law.

COVID-19 has not stopped us holding meetings of experts to tackle issues that continue to pose challenges in Europe today. You may hear, for example, from Christiana, Raymond and Lynn, all stateless, who are actively committed to raising awareness about the impact of statelessness and advocating for the rights of stateless people living in Europe.

The Rule of Law and effective justice systems are essential for our resilience in these times. The Consultative Councils of European Judges and of European Prosecutors respectively have each elaborated new standards in the form of Opinions, which are aimed at fostering judges and prosecutors’ independence, impartiality and competence and guiding member states in this respect.

We hope you enjoy this year’s issue and your comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

We wish you a very restful and peaceful end of the year and look forward to working together with you again in 2022.

Livia Stoica Becht

Head of Division for Legal Co-operation

Secretary to the European Committee on Legal Co-operation