Objectives and desired results

1) General objective

To provide high-quality international expertise, advisory support and analytical assistance to the State Judicial Administration of Ukraine (SJA) and other relevant judicial institutions on judicial digitalization, data analysis and data management, in support of the development of the case-weighting methodology for Ukrainian courts and of evidence-based court management, including the identification and mitigation of risks in automated case allocation, as well as general advisory support on the digitalization of the judicial system, including guidance on and consultations during the development of judicial e-tools and digital products.

2) Specific objectives

• Analyze the availability, structure and quality of case data in UJICS, the Electronic Court subsystem and judicial statistics, and advise on their use for the case-weighting study.

• Contribute to the development of the case-weighting methodology, action/work plan, case categorisation and complexity framework, and data collection templates and tools.

•  Prepare analytical notes on identifying and assessing risks in automated case allocation, including methodological recommendations for risk assessment and mitigation.

•  Support the development of methodologies, standards and guidelines for evidence-based court management, judicial statistics and IT governance, and deliver related capacity-development activities for SJA staff, Working Group members and other stakeholders.

•  Provide analysis, guidance and consultations to judicial institutions on the development of e-tools and digital products for the judiciary at all stages of their development, in line with European standards and good practices on the digitalization of justice.

3) Anticipated results

•  The SJA and the case-weighting Working Group are equipped with an assessment of available judicial data and practical recommendations on data sources, extraction and quality for the case-weighting study.

•  Methodological and practical tools for the case-weighting study (data collection templates, instructions, data validation procedures) developed or improved.

•  Risks in automated case allocation identified and assessed, and methodological recommendations for their mitigation provided to the SJA and other relevant institutions.

•  Increased capacity of SJA staff and other stakeholders to use judicial data for evidence-based court management.

•  Judicial institutions are supported with expert analysis, guidance and consultations in the development of e-tools and digital products, contributing to user-oriented, interoperable, secure and sustainable digital solutions for the judiciary.

•  Strengthened cooperation and knowledge exchange between technical specialists, judicial institutions and international experts.

• International expertise and EU Member States’ practices on judicial digitalization integrated into Project outputs and technical assistance activities.

Description of the assignment

1) Planned activities

The Expert shall work under the overall supervision of the Senior National Key Expert on Judiciary Reform and Pillar 1 Lead, and in close coordination with other Project experts and relevant beneficiary institutions.

Depending on the specific assignment and area of expertise, the Expert may be required to provide some or all of the following services:

A. Data analysis, analytical notes and methodologies

•  Analyze the functionality, data structure and data quality of UJICS, the Electronic Court subsystem and other judicial information systems relevant to workload measurement and case-weighting.

• Map information flows and data sources, identify gaps and limitations in judicial statistics, and propose solutions for data extraction, validation and processing for the case-weighting study.

•  Contribute to the case-weighting methodology, action/work plan, case categorization and complexity framework, and data collection templates and tools.

•  Prepare analytical notes on identifying and assessing risks in automated case allocation, including methodological recommendations for risk assessment and mitigation.

B. Practical tools, user requirements and capacity development

•  Develop instructions, guidance and practical materials for the collection and use of judicial data in the case-weighting study and in court management.

•  Consult judicial stakeholders and gather user requirements for digital tools and system improvements supporting evidence-based court management.

•  Design and deliver training sessions, workshops and other capacity-development activities for SJA staff, Working Group members and other relevant stakeholders.

C. Advisory support on the development of judicial e-tools and digital products

•  Analyze existing and planned e-tools, digital services and products of the judicial system (including UJICS modules, the Electronic Court subsystem and related services) in terms of user needs, functionality, usability, data quality, interoperability, information security and compliance with European standards and good practices on the digitalization of justice.

•  Provide guidance on the development of new and improvement of existing e-tools and digital products, including the preparation or review of concepts, business and functional requirements, technical specifications and terms of reference.

•  Provide consultations to judicial institutions at all stages of the development of e-tools and digital products: needs assessment, concept design, development, testing and piloting, implementation, and post-implementation evaluation.

•  Review technical documentation, prototypes and test versions, contribute to user acceptance testing, and prepare recommendations on identified shortcomings and improvements.

•  Advise on IT governance, change management, user support and training needed for the successful introduction and sustainable use of digital solutions in courts and judicial institutions.

D. Representation of the Project’s position and results of work

• Participation in Working Group meetings, stakeholder consultations and other working and coordination platforms dedicated to the case-weighting study, automated case allocation and judicial digitalization.

•  Presentation of analytical notes, methodologies and other materials prepared by the expert under the assignment received from the Project during public events and working meetings.

2) Anticipated deliverables

3) Consultation

The Expert shall work under the overall supervision of the Senior National Key Expert on Judiciary Reform and Pillar 1 Lead.

The Expert shall maintain regular communication with the designated Project experts concerning the prioritization and allocation of analytical and capacity-development tasks; the scope, methodology and expected outputs of expert products; access to, handling and processing of judicial data; consultations with the SJA, courts and other relevant beneficiaries; the preparation and delivery of training and workshops; participation in Working Groups and coordination mechanisms; the submission, review and revision of deliverables; and any circumstances that may affect the quality, timeliness or impartiality of the assignment.

The Expert shall promptly communicate any potential conflict of interest, confidentiality or data-protection concern, or other circumstance that may affect the performance of the assignment.

4) Implementation period

Start date: January 2027

End date: June 2030

Effective duration of the assignment: 42 months

5) Place of performance

The assignment shall primarily be performed on a home-based basis. Frequent travel to and within Ukraine may be required, upon formal request by Expertise France and subject to applicable security and contractual arrangements.

Participation in meetings, consultations and other Project activities may take place in person or online, subject to prior agreement with the Program Key Expert.