CLOSURES: 9 Out of 51 Judicial Offices in Armenia to be Shut Down

Nine out of Armenia's 51 judicial offices will be closed, as reported by the Supreme Judicial Council.

“The closure of the Meghri office is exclusively in this context, as the issue of its closure has been much debated in recent days, even in geopolitical terms. Therefore, we deem it necessary to clarify the following: After discussions in the Judicial Department, a decision has been made to close 9 of the 51 judicial offices operating throughout Armenia, specifically in Ashotsk, Tashir, Talin, Artik, Martuni, Vedi, Yeghegnadzor, Sisian, and Meghri.

For the offices mentioned, there has not been a permanently stationed judge in Ashotsk and Meghri for a long time; however, communal and maintenance expenses have still been incurred for the courthouse buildings, and judicial staff have received salaries from the state budget despite being partially or fully inactive. In the other 7 offices, one or two judges were operating, and these courts were similarly not sufficiently loaded, leading to unnecessary expenditure of state resources.

It is also important to emphasize that 8 of the 9 offices have been functioning in such deplorable building conditions that they are simply unfit for the esteemed position of a court, and they have harmed the reputation of the judiciary for the citizens entering these buildings. The Judicial Department took into account that new electronic tools for civil proceedings have been introduced, which, under these conditions, often eliminate the need for physical presence in court.

This decision will save the state around 200 million Armenian drams annually.