Brussels, 16/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 14 March, the European Parliament passed a resolution on judicial training in which it states that various types of training could be provided via exchanges or online through video-conferencing, webstreaming and online courses, but says that direct contact is the best solution.
The EP points out that judges want training courses to be better adapted to their needs; judges seem to prefer interactive training where they can exchange experiences and discuss case studies rather than “classic” (top-down) training formulae. The EP notes that “multilingual training is important - a study shows that only a relatively small number of judges speak a foreign language well enough to be able to participate actively in judicial training in other member states”.
MEPs take the view that one way of resolving the problems (costs, language training, cost-effectiveness) is to utilise modern technology and finance the creation of applications (“apps”) on the lines of Apple's iTunes U; such “apps”, prepared by the national schools, ERA (European Law Academy), universities and other trainers, would consist of training courses, with video material, including language training (with particular emphasis on legal terminology) and instruction about national legal systems, for example, or particular legal procedures, and would be free of charge to members of the judiciary. (LC/transl.fl)