On 28-30 November 2016 delegation from Azerbaijan including the representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Training Sector of the Judicial Legal Council, the Azerbaijani Association of Judges, the Justice Academy, Science-Education Centre of the Prosecutor General’s Office, Collegium of Advocates and ASAN Training Centre of the Republic of Azerbaijan visited the Centre for Judicial Studies and other judicial institutions in Lisbon, Portugal. The study visit was implemented in the framework of the CoE/EU Eastern Partnership PCF 2015-2017 project “Support to increased efficiency of courts, improved training of judges and judicial self-governance in Azerbaijan”. 

During the visit the Azerbaijani delegation got familiar with the work and organisation of the Portuguese Centre for Judicial Studies, as well as methodology and training curriculum for initial and continuous training the Centre offers to legal professionals. Furthermore, the Azerbaijani delegates visited the Prosecutor General’s Office and the High Council for the Judiciary of Portugal and received information on functioning and role of these judicial institutions.                                                                         

Along with that, the participants from Azerbaijan also met with the representatives of the Lisbon Regional Council of the Portuguese Bar Association, the Court Clerks Training Centre and the Prison Administration and had a discussion on training of lawyers, court clerks and prison staff in Portugal.

As a result of the study visit, the representatives of the judicial training institutions and justice stakeholders from Azerbaijan explored the Portuguese practices in training of legal professionals, exchanged experience and established new contacts for possible cooperation between institutions.