N16.T6 – Pavličić: The Authorities Must Resolve the Issue of Judges’ Retirement
HRA NEWSLETTER 16 – TOPIC 6
In 2025, the Supreme Court of Montenegro achieved an efficiency rate of 108%, while more than 14,000 old cases were resolved across all courts, announced Valentina Pavličić at a press conference held to mark one year since she assumed the position of President of the Supreme Court.
She stated that the results achieved during the previous year testify to the maturity of the judicial system, the responsibility of judges and court staff, as well as to a well-established and clearly defined management structure and direction of the Montenegrin judiciary.
“By achieving these results, the ultimate goal is reached—namely, that there is no compromise with judicial independence, professionalism, and the attainment of the highest possible efficiency. The level of commitment of the Supreme Court of Montenegro is best confirmed by the fact that, through the fulfilment of a key measure from the Reform Agenda, Montenegro gained access to financial support from the European Union in the amount of EUR 2.317 million,” Pavličić stated.
She also took the opportunity to highlight the results achieved by the court she leads.
“During 2025, the Supreme Court had 5,514 cases in its docket, which, compared to 2024, represents a 25% increase in the number of cases under consideration. However, the Supreme Court resolved 55% more cases than in 2024, deciding 4,088 cases across all three jurisdictions,” Pavličić said.
She emphasized that in the civil division, the court achieved an efficiency rate of 143%, meaning that it resolved all newly received cases and half of the backlog, while in the criminal division there were no backlog cases at all.
Nevertheless, she warned that the situation could deteriorate if the executive and legislative branches fail to react in a timely manner and resolve the issue of the retirement age for Supreme Court judges.
“Already during this year, a significant number of judges will meet the conditions for retirement based on age. The departure of experienced judges would lead to a new blockage in the work of the courts.”
According to her, the Supreme Court is deciding this year on a large number of complex cases of crucial importance for the entire legal order.
“Without delay, it is necessary to resolve the issue of the age limit for the termination of judicial office for Supreme Court judges as the highest judicial instance, particularly in a year that is of decisive importance for achieving results within the judicial system and, consequently, for the closure of Chapters 23 and 24,” Pavličić emphasized.
She also pointed out that significant progress had been made during the previous year in all Montenegrin courts with regard to resolving old cases.
“The operational team monitoring and supervising the benchmarks from the Programme for the Resolution of Old Cases statistically established that more than 14,000 old cases were resolved at the level of all courts,” said the head of the Montenegrin judiciary.
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