Jurisdiction of the BiH Court Reduced, Seat of the Appellate Division to be Determined Later!

(Patria) - The formation of a Higher or Appellate Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina is not planned in the latest amendments to the Law on the Court of BiH, which is to be discussed at a session of the Council of Ministers of BiH.

This Law, as Istraga learns, plans for the formation of an “Appellate Division of the Court of BiH. The seat of this division would be in Republika Srpska, but the exact location would be determined only a year after this Law is adopted, writes Istraga.ba.

“Judicial power at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina is exercised by the Court of BiH and the Appellate Division of the Court of BiH. The Court is competent to judge in the first instance, and the Appellate Division of the Court to judge in the second instance and decide on other matters prescribed by this law,” it is stated in the draft Law proposal that is to be discussed at the session of the Council of Ministers of BiH today.

When it comes to the seat of the Court, the law does not specify where the seat of the Appellate Division is.

“The Parliamentary Assembly of BiH will, no later than one year from the date of entry into force of this law, adopt amendments to this law that will determine the seat of the Appellate Division of the Court, which cannot be in the same entity as the seat of the Court. Until a decision is made, the seat of the Appellate Division of the Court will temporarily be in Sarajevo.

Let us remind you, the current Law on the Court of BiH also prescribes the existence of an Appellate Division of the Court of BiH, which means that there is no significant change in this segment. However, unlike the current Law, the draft of the new Law provides for the Appellate Division to have its own president.

“The Court and the Appellate Division of the Court have their own president,” it is stated in Article 20 of the draft Law on the Court, which clearly lists the competencies of the President of the Court and the Appellate Division of the Court.

You can read the complete draft Law on the Court of BiH by clicking here.

When it comes to the jurisdiction of the Court of BiH, i.e., the Appellate Division of the Court of BiH, it is significantly reduced compared to before. Here is the current criminal jurisdiction of the Court of BiH, prescribed by Article 7 of the current Law on the Court of BiH.

“The Court is competent for criminal offenses established by the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina and other laws of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

(2) The Court is further competent for criminal offenses established by the laws of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska, and Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina when these criminal offenses:

a) threaten the sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence, state security, and international subjectivity of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

b) may have serious repercussions or harmful consequences for the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, or may cause other harmful consequences for Bosnia and Herzegovina, or may cause serious economic damage or other harmful consequences outside the territory of the given entity or Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” it is stated in Article 7 of the current Law.

It was precisely under this article that jurisdiction was established for the Respirators case, where officials of only one entity were convicted, in this case, the Federation of BiH (Fadil Novalić and others case).

Now, however, that jurisdiction is being limited. Here is what is prescribed by the new draft Law on the Court of BiH.

“The Court is also competent for criminal offenses in the areas of terrorism, human trafficking and sexual exploitation of women and children, illegal drug trafficking, illegal arms trafficking, money laundering, corruption, environmental protection, counterfeiting of means of payment, computer and organized crime prescribed by the laws of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska, and Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: Brčko District):

a) if they were committed partially or entirely on the territory of two entities, one or two entities and Brčko District, or outside the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina; or
b) if they were committed partially or entirely by illegal activities carried out by joint action of criminal groups on the territory of two entities, one or two entities and Brčko District, or outside the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina; or
c) if the commission of these criminal offenses caused damage of a large scale to the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina; or
d) if these criminal offenses are prescribed by international agreements ratified by Bosnia and Herzegovina,” it is stated in the draft Law.

Therefore, according to the draft of the new Law, respirators could not be prosecuted before the Court of BiH, because the crime was committed at the level of one entity. In addition, the prescribed “damage to the state of BiH” has now been reformulated as “damage of a large scale to the state of BiH”.