The USAID Rule of Law Program's judicial shadowing mission in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region commenced in mid-June. On June 13, U.S. Judge Tim Baland, accompanied by the Rule of Law Program’s Judicial Exchange Program Manager Mamuka Mamatsashvili, arrived in Akhaltsikhe to initiate the Samtskhe-Javaketi mentoring mission.

Judge Baland will work closely with the Akhaltikhe and Akhalkalaki District Courts, the Adigeni, Aspindza, Borjomi, and Ninotsminda Magistrate Courts, Akhaltikhe University, and the Legal Aid Service. As part of this cooperation, Judge Baland will share his experience with local judges, attorneys and law students, visit court sessions, and hold both group and individual meetings with judges, court staff, Legal Aid Service lawyers, private attorneys, and law students. Judge Baland will performing this work in Samtskhe-Javaketi until mid-October.

During his first day in Akhaltsikhe, a meeting was convened for Judge Baland at the Akhaltsikhe District Court. Acting Court Chairwoman Anahit Oganesyan, presiding judges, and court staff warmly welcomed their American counterpart. The Chairperson expressed her willingness and readiness to provide all possible support to the U.S. judge. The discussion encompassed the objectives, significance, and anticipated outcomes of the shadowing program for Georgia's judicial system.

The following day, Judge Baland met with Dean David Khobelia of the Faculty of Law at Akhaltsikhe University. During the meeting, the Dean highlighted that he had disseminated information among local students about the visit of the American judge, which garnered substantial interest among the student body. Although the academic term had already concluded, students expressed a desire to meet the American judge and expressed their willingness to participate in activities organized by the judge.

Following the university meeting, Judge Baland visited the Akhaltsikhe Legal Aid Service bureau, where he met with Davit Zaridze, the Bureau's Head.

Currently, Judge Baland is residing in Akhaltsikhe and actively attending court sessions at the courthouse there, as well as meeting with his fellow judges.

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Judge Tim Baland served as a Minnesota District Court Judge from 1984 to 2006. He was a founding member of the General Practice Section for the Minnesota State Bar Association and served as Section President from 1979-1982. He served as Assistant Public Defender for the Seventh Judicial District for two years. From 2012-2016, he assisted the Minnesota Board on Judicial Standards with the review and investigation of complaints, preparation of summaries of complaints for Board consideration, and preparation of letters advising complainants of action taken by the Board, among other functions.

Judge Baland also brings an extensive body of international experience. He served as an International Judge for the United Nations Mission in Kosovo in 2005, followed by another term from 2006 to 2008. Then he served as President of the Independent Judicial and Prosecutorial Commission of Kosovo, which vetted and evaluated candidates for judicial and prosecutorial positions, including a new Chief Justice, Attorney General and 330 other judges and prosecutors.

From 2011-2019, Judge Baland conducted a series of targeted technical assistance activities in support of Georgia’s High Council of Justice. For example, he conducted workshops for judges and judicial assistants on courtroom communication and courtroom management and created a “pocket guide” on these topics for use by judges in their courtrooms. He also drafted and presented proposed amendments to the Law on Courts of Georgia at a workshop convened by the Chair of the Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament in response to a decision by the Constitutional Court.