The introduction of the Debt Officer/Schuldenfunctionaris in court proceedings regarding cases of people with problematic debts, submitted by ?he Netherlands was the winner of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice’s (CEPEJ) Crystal Scales Prize 2025 Award. The award ceremony, held at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia, on Thursday, was organised by the Cyprus Judicial Training School and ‘Hope For Children’ CRC Policy Center, as winners of the 2023 competition.
Created in 2005, the ‘Crystal Scales of Justice’ Prize is a competition aimed at discovering and highlighting innovative and efficient practices concerning the functioning of justice, judicial procedures or the organisation of courts.
Opening the Ceremony, CEPEJ President Francesco Depasquale, said that this was ‘a very important day for us’, as it gives ‘a unique opportunity to draw attention to the interesting and innovative initiatives’ that participated in the competition, find solutions and improve day to day experience concerning judicial procedures.
He said that 26 participations from 16 member states of the Council of Europe submitted their project for the 2025 edition of the competition.
Through this prize, organised by CEPEJ every two years he said, there is an opportunity for the exchange of good practices.
Referring to the winner of the 2023 edition of the Crystal Scales of Justice Prize – awarded to Cyprus’ Judicial Training School and ‘Hope For Children’ – CRC Policy Center for its ‘Kids in Court Game’ initiative for children – Depasquale said that this initiative was ‘so innovative’ and beneficial to children who end up having to go to court.
The project ‘Kids in Court Game’ consists of four different games designed to prepare children psychologically and emotionally to testify in court as witnesses.
He congratulated them on their success, noting that it is ‘encouraging’ that the 2023 prize winner project is being used in practice. The jury managed to find the right practice, he said, expressing certainty that they would do the same this year as well.
François Paychère, President of the Jury said prior to the announcement of the 2025 winner, that ‘the rule of law is in danger all over the world and we have to find answers to this problem’. He added that, ‘on a very modest level’ the prize was a kind of an answer to this debate about the rule of law, noting that it helps the judicial system to find good solutions for the citizens. ‘Our aim is to deliver better service to the citizens’, he said. The other Jury members were Simon Cardon de Lichtbuer , Svjetlana Milisic Velickovski, and Phani Hadjiphani.
The winner, ‘Schuldenfunctionaris/Debt officer’ was among three finalists. The three projects were presented at the ceremony.
The Dutch team that presented their project, said that the idea was to help people who appear in court for problematic debt. When presenting court, a judge calls a debt officer to come in and try to guide these people to debt counseling. They said that, since 2023 every court in the Netherlands is using this tool.
The Jury members said that the project was helping the most disadvantaged litigants, and that they liked the idea of humanity, and of a judge who takes a larger view of the problem and proposes a solution. ‘Not paying the bills is a sign that often hides a more complex reality’, they said, noting that, the earlier the detection, the better the solution.
The winning team, after accepting the award, said that it was a ‘great honour’ considering the effect and that is now growing in the Netherlands, while it is now getting European attention. They also said they would like to see this idea implemented throughout Europe.
The other two projects – from Spain and Belgium – received a special mention.
Spain’s project concerns the hyper-automation of order of payment procedures in justice, which according to the team from Spain’s Ministry of Justice who presented it led to reduction of up to 100 days in resolution times, less errors and higher efficiency, but also greater legal certainty.
The Jury said about the Spain’s project expedites orders for payment, and the delivery of justice, saves time for staff to do other tasks, but also deploys digital tools and a sophisticated automation, and AI, thus fully embracing the digital era. In theory, they said, the solution is transferable, but also, they acknowledged that not all countries have the same resources to implement it.
The third candidate concerned the creation of the Center for Conservatorship in Belgium, which is an accessible point of contact, to answer to questions of those interested and lawyers on the conservatorship procedure. The team that presented the project said that 150.000 people were currently under conservatorship in Belgium that this number was increasing each year due to aging population. They said the aim was to become a centre of expertise on conservatorship.
Delivering their assessment, the jury said that project was about dedication to protecting one of the most vulnerable groups in societies, while noting that conservatorship is not an area usually addressed, and that they appreciated the innovation behind this project. It illustrates an important trend that the judiciary is trying to get closer to citizens and directly respond to their needs, they said.
Prior to the awards ceremony, representatives of all stakeholders in the field of child-friendly justice in Cyprus (Hope for Children, State Law Office, Judges, Bar Association), spoke about their experience and how the ‘Kids in Court Game helped children have a more positive experience in relation to court proceedings.