The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), through the Rule of Law Program (Program) implemented by the East-West Management Institute (EWMI), is pleased to continue its judicial exchange programming. The purpose of this programming is to further strengthen the professional capacity of civil and administrative judges in Georgia to work effectively and efficiently, and to gain knowledge and skills in both specific and more general subject areas. These aims will be achieved by supporting activities that enable Georgian judges to have more direct interactions with U.S. judges, administrators, judicial educators, and relevant legal actors.

Activities will include study visits and longer-term placements (secondments) of Georgian judges to the United States during which judges will interact with American judges, observe courtroom procedure, learn U.S. best practices for managing a court docket, and gain knowledge on legal topics of relevance to Georgian practice. In addition to the activities mentioned above, the Program will also keep an “open-door” for judges to submit original, targeted ideas for individual study and professional development for short periods of time outside Georgia.

Out-of-country "Open Door" Judicial Deceloment Opportunities

As mentioned above, in addition to study tours and secondments, the Program will provide individual judges the opportunity to participate in out-of-country learning opportunities tailored to their interests and needs. In 2023 for example, the Program supported one Georgian judge to attend a 3-week summer school at Stanford University (California, USA) and another judge to attend a 2-week conference at Leiden University (Netherlands).

The Program will continue to provide such opportunities in 2024. Judges who hear civil and administrative cases are eligible to apply for open-door activities.

If a judge can identify seminars, trainings, conferences, or summer schools outside of Georgia that will advance their professional development, the Program will consider providing organizational and financial support.

It is important that judges applying for the program have the foreign language needed to participate meaningfully in the activity, or the language in which translation will be provided at the activity. Proof of language ability or availability of translation will need to be provided prior to the activity.

If the activity takes place in the United States or any other country with which Georgia does not have a visa-free regime, the judge must be willing to apply for the program at least three months prior to the event. If the activity takes place in a country which is visa-free for Georgian citizens, the judge must apply one-and-a-half months in advance of the event. This is all to make sure that if the application is approved, the Program will have sufficient time to address organizational and financial matters.

 Application Process

To apply for open-door support, an applicant must:

1. Complete an Open-Door Judicial Activity Application. The application should include a strong justification for the appropriateness and importance of participation in the event, as well as the relevance of the topic of the event to the judge’s interest and practice.
2. Send the completed application along with a current resume to the following e-mail address: info.rolp@ewmi.org. The subject line of the email should read, “Judicial Exchange Training Program – Open-Door."

If the application form is not filled out completely, the submission will not be considered.

Applications will be considered when they are submitted. The final deadline for receiving applications is September 30, 2024.

Selection Process

Each application will be evaluated by the Program on an individual basis, considering the appropriateness and practicality of the judge’s participation in a particular event, as well as their ability to fully participate in and benefit from the event.

During the application review and evaluation process, priority will be given to support such activities where co-financing is provided.

Judges for this exchange opportunity will be selected through a fair and objective process. Selection for the opportunity will be based on the participants’ ability to benefit from the opportunity and to both use and share the knowledge gained upon their return to Georgia.

Judges previously brought to the U.S. under the USAID Rule of Law Program or USAID-funded program - Promoting Rule of Law in Georgia (PROLoG) Activity will be considered for judicial exchanges under the Rule of Law Program, however, preference may be given to judges who were not part of previous judicial exchanges and otherwise fit the criteria.

Not being selected for one opportunity will not affect a judge’s chances of being selected for another opportunity at a later date. Judges should only apply for those opportunities where the expected travel dates fit with their schedules and where they can demonstrate that their interests relate to the subject matter of the particular opportunity.

If you have questions regarding the application process, please contact Ana Gorduladze at agorduladze@ewmi.org; phone: +995 557 398 929.

Please note: The information provided in this form will be treated as confidential and will only be used only for the purpose of preparing and implementing the USAID Rule of Law Program’s judicial educational and exchange programs.

Please note: If you are interested in this exchange program, you must complete this application form even if you submitted an application for another opportunity.