BAKU - Azerbaijan plans to increase its authorized number of judges to 800 in the near term as the country seeks to ease pressure on its court system, Chief Justice Inam Karimov said.
Karimov, who also chairs the Judicial-Legal Council, said Azerbaijan currently has about seven judges for every 100,000 residents, according to Vesti Baku.
He compared that rate with an average of 21 judges per 100,000 people in Europe. Türkiye has 19, Italy, France and Spain have between 11 and 12, and Georgia has 10, he said.
The planned expansion follows an earlier projection that Azerbaijan’s judicial corps would exceed 700 members in 2026, Report.az reported in February.
Digitalization Also Part of the Plan
Karimov said adding judges is not the only objective. The authorities also intend to reduce the amount of manual work in courts by expanding digital systems and modern communications technology.
He did not specify the current total number of serving judges or give a deadline for filling all 800 authorized positions.