Development of competence in the judiciary

The national competence development measures and training activities of the judiciary are carried out by the National Courts Administration in cooperation with the Judicial Training Board.

In addition, the courts independently implement competence development measures by court line (general courts, administrative courts, special courts), regionally (for instance by judicial district of the court of appeal) and according to the needs of each court.

Changes in working life, digitalisation and social development make it necessary to ensure the adequacy of skills and the development of new structures that safeguard it, so that citizens’ legal protection, fair trial and fundamental and human rights are realised in the courts with high quality and certainty. The development of learning culture and competence is our common goal.

Training activities

The National Courts Administration provides the staff of the judiciary with national high-quality and versatile training.

Training activities aim to provide opportunities to develop skills and competences and to strengthen the legal competence and legal knowledge of the staff of the judiciary. In addition to the National Courts Administrations training activities, the courts have their own personnel and training plans and are responsible for managing the competence of their personnel.

The National Courts Administration organises more than 100 training events per year for the staff of the judiciary. The training can be divided into three categories:

  • The objective of basic training is to achieve the level of professional competence that each staff member must possess. Basic level training is intended either for staff in the early stages of their careers or for experienced staff who change the group of subjects.
  • Advanced training requires the completion of previous basic training or a corresponding level of competence. In-depth training is intended for staff, but especially for more experienced workers who want to deepen their own skills.
  • Specialisation training requires the completion of advanced training or in-depth knowledge of the subject of training. Intended for personnel who need special expertise for a specific group of issues.

Training is planned in cooperation with the Judicial Training Board, court staff, the National Prosecution Authority, universities and other stakeholders.

Training provision

The training provision is evaluated annually in cooperation with the Judicial Training Board and is sought to be developed based on information received from national training needs surveys and participant feedback, as well as by examining the development of the number of matters and societal development.

To identify the needs for developing competence, information is collected, for example,

  • on international and national changes in the operating environment;
  • on competence development needs and training needs: agency-specific and personal needs;
  • on development needs per court line
  • via the cooperation network and quality work of district courts, including courts of appeal and the Supreme Court
  • via networks of responsible judges, the training working group and networks of administrative courts.

The training offered by the National Courts Administration is determined around different legal themes and the provision has been targeted at different categories of personnel. We provide training for judicial staff, office staff, and managers and supervisors. The training varies from short webinars to a few years’ training programmes. Typical longer-term training programmes include:

  • Training programmes for new judicial staff
    • Training programme for district notaries – intended for those carrying out court traineeships
    • Training programmes for assistant judges – three-year training programme preparing for the duties of judge
    • Training programmes for new judges
  • Management and leadership training
    • Legal leadership training (OikeusJYET)
  • Other training programmes
    • Reconciliation training programmes
    • Obligation Court training programme
    • Direction of Proceedings in Administrative Judicial Procedure

The training provided by the National Courts Administration will be implemented in the form of local training, webinars and online learning platforms. In addition, over the past few years, particular efforts have been made to develop the capacity to support the digitalisation of justice.

International cooperation in training

The Finnish Courts Administration is engaged in international cooperation aimed at increasing the international networking and expertise of the staff of the judiciary in EU legislation. International cooperation includes exchange of judges, international training and seminars carried out in cooperation with European cooperation networks.

International training cooperation is mainly conducted with the European Judicial Training Network (EJTN), the Nordic Judicial Training Network (SEND) and the European Academy of Law Trier (ERA). International cooperation is also carried out with the following organisations: Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP), the European Institute for Public Administration (EIPA).