“Training Legal Personnel” Webinar – Report by Zakon.kz
The training of legal personnel became the primary topic at the new webinar held under the “Legal Dialogues” project, reports Zakon.kz.
Organizers of the webinar included the Nursultan Nazarbayev Foundation, the Human Rights Commission under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and the Sorbonne-Kazakhstan Institute at Abai KazNPU.
Support for conducting this expert online meeting in jurisprudence was provided by the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), Almaty Adaldyq Alany, and the national volunteer movement “Accelerator of Good: Izgilik elshisi.”
Participants in the “Training Legal Personnel” webinar included Parliament deputies, judges, lawyers, practicing attorneys, law enforcement officials, heads of government bodies, university rectors, scholars, researchers, faculty, students, master’s and doctoral candidates in the legal field, as well as the public interested in legal issues.
The webinar was moderated by Igor Rogov, Deputy Executive Director of the Nursultan Nazarbayev Foundation, Chair of the Presidential Human Rights Commission of Kazakhstan, member of the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission, Doctor of Law, and Professor.
At the opening, the moderator emphasized that, on the eve of the great celebration—the 30th anniversary of Independence—the decisive role of the First President, Elbasy, in achieving the centuries-old dream of the country’s sovereignty and establishing a new statehood in Kazakhstan was clear.
“Gaining independence was essentially parliamentary in nature,” Rogov said. “This involved drafting significant legislation, including the constitutional law on state independence and the Constitution of Kazakhstan. All of this was accomplished in record time and with high quality—thanks to the high level of legal science our country possessed at the time. Today, it is crucial to maintain that standard. To develop, a country must have legal professionals who meet new requirements, new challenges, and the standards set by the international community in terms of governance and democratic institutions.”
Rogov stated that modernizing legal education is as important as transforming the entire state. He added that the Senate of the Parliament and the Presidential Human Rights Commission will soon review issues related to the training of legal personnel.
The webinar served as an informational and educational platform where domestic specialists, teachers, and professors were introduced to best practices and international case studies in legal education. Speakers from France and Germany shared how universities in those countries train lawyers, judges, attorneys, prosecutors, and police officers.
Rogov noted that international experience is significant for Kazakhstan, but emphasized that the country does not intend to copy educational standards directly; rather, it is vital to learn from these experiences and creatively adapt them to fit local needs.
He also reminded that while drafting and shaping the current Constitution, civil, criminal, and criminal procedure codes, and other laws, international experience was taken into account and seamlessly integrated with Kazakhstan’s sovereignty.
Speakers at the “Training Legal Personnel” webinar included:
Pierre Tiffin – Director of the Institute of Law, Economics, and Management at the University of Lorraine, Doctor of Legal Sciences;
Christian Maitre – Chair of the admission jury to the Bar for all candidates from Grand Est, Rector of the University of Strasbourg (1998–2003), Doctor of Legal Sciences;
Patrick Dolla – Former judge at the Administrative Court of France, Doctor of Legal Sciences, Professor at Strasbourg and Pantheon‑Sorbonne Universities;
Thomas Herrmann – Presiding Judge at the Landgericht Hannover and current examiner at the Ministry of Justice of Lower Saxony;
Wilfried Bernhardt – Former State Secretary of Saxony, Honorary Professor in internet law (e‑government & e‑justice, University of Leipzig), Managing Director at Bernhardt IT Management Consulting GmbH;
Jörg Pudelka – Head of the GIZ office in the Republic of Kazakhstan;
Kristina Khokhlova – Coordinator of the HELP project in Central Asia.
The webinar’s overall coordination was conducted by Ainur Sabitova, Director of the Sorbonne‑Kazakhstan Institute, Doctor of Legal Sciences, Professor.
Key Topics Covered:
Three-tier system in France: bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels—a structured pathway for future legal professionals.
Two-stage examination in Germany: requirements for judges, notaries, lawyers, prosecutors, and administrative jurists, and preparation strategies.
Soft-skills training: teaching negotiation, rhetoric, dispute resolution, mediation, and mandatory internships in court, law firms, and administrative bodies for hands-on experience.
HELP Program: the Council of Europe’s human rights educational program and opportunities it offers to legal professionals.
