Cambodia
Activities and Results
Cambodia, due to the abolition of laws and massacre of intellectuals and others that took place during the Pol Pot regime (1975 to 1979), the country suffered a serious lack of basic laws, as well as legal professionals capable of interpreting and administering the law. Under these circumstances, the establishment of judicial systems through development of laws and training of legal professionals was an urgent challenge the country was forced to address. For this reason, the Cambodian government requested assistance from Japan to improve its legal and judicial systems.
Upon receiving the request, Japanese legal technical assistance to Cambodia officially began in 1996 under the framework of JICA with the participation of the MOJ. In 1999, a Legal and Judicial Development Project was initiated with Cambodia to support its effort in drafting the Civil Code and the Code of Civil Procedure. As a result, the Code of Civil Procedure and the Civil Code were enacted in 2006 and 2007, respectively. The above project is continuing to disseminate the two new codes, as well as to draft other civil-related laws.
In parallel with this, for the purpose of facilitating appropriate interpretation and operation of the codes, in 2005, a capacity-building project was commenced at the Royal School for Judges and Prosecutors in Cambodia to improve its training on civil matters. In this project, aiming towards autonomous management of the school, intensive training was provided to candidate trainers selected from among promising young judges for their capacity-building. Currently, a few graduates from the school who have gone through this training are serving as faculty members.
Subsequently in April 2012, a new project under a different framework was begun for the further dissemination of the Civil Code and the Code of Civil Procedure. This project works with four major legal institutions in Cambodia: the Ministry of Justice, the Royal Academy for Judicial Professions (an elite organization of the Royal School for Judges and Prosecutors), the Bar Association of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and the Royal University of Law and Economics.
From April 2017, the Civil Code and the Code of Civil Procedure were widely and appropriately applied, and a new project was launched with the aim of establishing the basis for appropriate practice in accordance with these laws. In this project, the pillars are the drafting of important civil laws and regulations such as the Real Estate Registration Law, preparation of example forms for things such as complaints, and the disclosure of decisions. The ICD dispatches (long-term/short-term) instructors as experts, and long-term experts that were judges, prosecutors and lawyers provide assistance by sharing and instructing each working group.
In January 2020, the Research and Training Institute, Ministry of Justice of Japan and the Royal Academy for Judicial Professions, Ministry of Justice of Cambodia also signed/exchanged a Memorandum of Cooperation in training and human resource development in the legal and judicial fields.
Based on the MOC, further development of cooperative relationship between the two institutions is expected.
Upon receiving the request, Japanese legal technical assistance to Cambodia officially began in 1996 under the framework of JICA with the participation of the MOJ. In 1999, a Legal and Judicial Development Project was initiated with Cambodia to support its effort in drafting the Civil Code and the Code of Civil Procedure. As a result, the Code of Civil Procedure and the Civil Code were enacted in 2006 and 2007, respectively. The above project is continuing to disseminate the two new codes, as well as to draft other civil-related laws.
In parallel with this, for the purpose of facilitating appropriate interpretation and operation of the codes, in 2005, a capacity-building project was commenced at the Royal School for Judges and Prosecutors in Cambodia to improve its training on civil matters. In this project, aiming towards autonomous management of the school, intensive training was provided to candidate trainers selected from among promising young judges for their capacity-building. Currently, a few graduates from the school who have gone through this training are serving as faculty members.
Subsequently in April 2012, a new project under a different framework was begun for the further dissemination of the Civil Code and the Code of Civil Procedure. This project works with four major legal institutions in Cambodia: the Ministry of Justice, the Royal Academy for Judicial Professions (an elite organization of the Royal School for Judges and Prosecutors), the Bar Association of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and the Royal University of Law and Economics.
From April 2017, the Civil Code and the Code of Civil Procedure were widely and appropriately applied, and a new project was launched with the aim of establishing the basis for appropriate practice in accordance with these laws. In this project, the pillars are the drafting of important civil laws and regulations such as the Real Estate Registration Law, preparation of example forms for things such as complaints, and the disclosure of decisions. The ICD dispatches (long-term/short-term) instructors as experts, and long-term experts that were judges, prosecutors and lawyers provide assistance by sharing and instructing each working group.
In January 2020, the Research and Training Institute, Ministry of Justice of Japan and the Royal Academy for Judicial Professions, Ministry of Justice of Cambodia also signed/exchanged a Memorandum of Cooperation in training and human resource development in the legal and judicial fields.
Based on the MOC, further development of cooperative relationship between the two institutions is expected.