Ramin Gurbanov


Ramin Afad oglu Gurbanov  — Azerbaijan lawyer, scientist, President of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice of the Council of Europe. Judge of Baku Court of Appeal, member of Board of the Union of Associations of Judges of Azerbaijan. Head of Department on international law of the Institute of Law and Human Rights of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences. Doctor of law, professor of the Department on civil law disciplines of the Russian University of Economics.
Ramin Gurbanov is the head of the Working group of the Ministry of Justice on establishment and implementation of the e-court system in Azerbaijan, expert of the international projects in the field of evaluation and organization of court systems in Europe, coordinator of the World Bank and the Government of Azerbaijan joint large scale projects on modernization of Azerbaijan court system. Member of the Expert group on legal sciences of the High Attestation Commission under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Biography

Ramin Gurbanov was born in May 10, 1974 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
His father academician Afad Gurbanov is the prominent linguist, author of the modern Azerbaijan alphabet, mother Zohraxanum Gurbanova — PhD in medicine. R. Gurbanov has two brothers and two sisters: Rashad Kurbanov — doctor of law, professor, honored lawyer of Russian Federation; Fuad Gurbanov — doctor of medicine; Farah Gurbanova — doctor of medicine; Fidan Gurbanova — doctor of philology, professor.
Married, has three children.

Education

In 1990, Ramin Gurbanov graduated with medal from the secondary school N134 in Baku city. In 1995, he graduated with diploma of honor from the Faculty of international law and international relations of the Baku State University. From 1996 to 1998, he carried out the postgraduate studies in the Baku State University. From 1997 to 2000, he continued his education in the Military faculty of the Azerbaijan State Pedagogical University. In 2003, he graduated from the Faculty on administrative management of the Academy on Public Administration under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and in 2006 the Law faculty of the Russian Law Academy of the Russian Federation.
In 2002, he ran scientific researches on «Judicial independence and human rights protection by US courts» in the International center for human rights of the School of Law at the Northwestern University and on «The role of the US Department of Justice in the protection of human rights» in the Division on civil rights of the US Department of Justice. In addition, he successfully finalized his scientific researches on the topic «Judges` education is an essential element of their personal independence» in the US Federal Judicial Center, which is specialized training and educational center of US federal judges.
Ramin Gurbanov is a certified KPI professional and he successfully passed through the training courses on «e-Governance Strategies for Courts` Management: time requirements, solutions, innovations» in the Singapore Judicial Institute as well as the advanced courses on «Judicial management, organization of work in courts and e-case management» organized by the International Law Institute and Georgetown University.
Ramin Gurbanov speaks English, Russian, French and German languages.

Work experience

Ramin Gurbanov starts his work experience in 1995 on a position of legal consultant in the military division of the Ministry of Defense. From 1998 to 2013, he worked on a different positions in the Ministry of Justice, e.g. he was advisor, senior advisor in the field of drafting the legislative acts, organization of court activity, work with courts and justice institutions, as well as was the head of division on reforms in judicial and justice institutions of the General department on organization and supervision of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Besides, he was a member of the Working group on development of statutory documents regulating the activities of the Ministry of Justice as well as the Working group on application of modern information technologies in the justice institutions.
In 2013-2020 years, he works on the position of the judge in the Baku City Yasamal District Court. During these years, he delivered the highest number of judgments with acquittals in country. From 2020 up to now he is a judge of Criminal division of the Baku Court of Appeal.
From 2014, he works as a head of the Working group of the Ministry of Justice on establishment and implementation of the "e-Court"system in Azerbaijan. During recent years the international organizations awarded the «e-Court» and «e-Enforcement» systems, which have been developed by this group. In sub component of these systems, for the first time in court system the Artificial Intelligence have been implemented and instead of judges judgments were delivered by robots.
Along with that, the modern functionalities of this system such as the mobile application of «e-Court system», system on digital commercial disputes, the personal cabinet of court users and the unified judicial portal have been implemented. In 2017 the new analytical module of the «e-Court system» was awarded for the first time within the Council of Europe`s «Chrystal Scales of Justice» competition.

Work within the Council of Europe institutions

From 2005 Ramin Gurbanov is an official representative of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice of the Council of Europe. CEPEJ is an advisory and analytical institution of the Council of Europe, specialized in increasing the efficiency and quality of justice in European countries.
During past years, he participated in peer-evaluation missions to Switzerland, Estonia, Cyprus, Georgia and Slovak Republic, and presided in the groups to Lithuania, Latvia, Kazakhstan, Czech Republic, North Macedonia and Moldova. In 2014, for the first time the plenary meeting of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice held in Baku.
In 2014—2018 Ramin Gurbanov was elected as one of the four members of the Bureau of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice of the Council of Europe, and afterwards on a position of the vice-president. On 4 December 2018 he was elected on a position of the president of the CEPEJ through secret ballot voting by the representatives from 47 member states of the Council of Europe.

Co-operatıon with World Bank

From 2008, Ramin Gurbanov is a coordinator of the World Bank large-scale transformation projects on modernization of Azerbaijan court system, jointly implemented with the Government of Azerbaijan. Within these projects, the new standards on court infrastructure were developed, the official opening ceremonies of the modern court buildings and complexes with participation of the Head of the State were successfully organized, «e-Court» and «e-Enforcement» systems have been designed and implemented, the draft of the law on mediation in cooperation with the CEPEJ has been drafted and mediation centers have been piloted, as well as the studies and recommendations on modernization of Bar Association, establishment of private enforcement offices, juvenile justice, gender policy in the field of justice and quality of judgments have been performed.
On the eve of celebration of the 20th and 25th anniversary of co-operation of the Government of Azerbaijan and the World Bank these projects have been awarded as the best administered and implemented WB projects in Azerbaijan.
Ramin Gurbanov is the reporter of the Republic of Azerbaijan with regards to the World Bank «Doing Business» report. In 2019 Azerbaijan especially due to the modern functionalities of the «e-Court» system was ranked from 40th to 28th place among the 190 countries in the «Doing Business-2020» report.

Scientific and pedagogical activity

From 1996 Ramin Gurbanov is engaged in scientific work on legal issues. He was a postgraduate researcher at the law faculty of the Baku State University and afterwards the senior researcher in the Institute of Philosophy, Sociology and Law of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences. In 2002 he defended his scientific dissertation work on thesis «Combating the criminal water pollution: on materials of Kura and Araks rivers». In 2016 he received the scientific degree — doctor of law. His thesis of doctorate work is «Co-operation of the judicial authorities on the European continent: theoretical and practical issues».
He is specialized in the field of international law, criminal law, European law and human rights.
In 2011—2016, he worked as scientific consultant, senior scientific consultant of the Department on international relations and international law of the Institute of Philosophy, Sociology and Law of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences. In 2017 he was a senior scientific consultant of the Department on international law of the Institute on law and human rights of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences and at present he is a head of this department.
Ramin Gurbanov is a member of the Expert group on legal sciences of the High Attestation Commission under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Starting from 2004, Ramin Gurbanov is engaged in pedagogical work. From 2004 to 2005, he worked as a teacher in the Department on civil-procedure law of the «Odlar Yurdu» University. He delivered lectures in the sector on training of judges and prosecutors under the Judicial-Legal Council of Azerbaijan. From 2009 up to now, he is a lecturer at the Justice Academy. In 2018 he was an acting vice-director of this academy.
Ramin Gurbanov is a member of the numerous international organizations, such as American Bar Association, Russian Association on International Law and Union of Associations of Judges of Azerbaijan.

Publications

He is an author of more than 98 scientific publications on different aspects of international, European and criminal law, including the editions published in co-operation with European doctors of law Jean-Paul Jean, Jacques Buehler, Francois Paychere and others. Among his publications there are scientific studies of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice of the Council of Europe.
By the decision of the Minister of Justice of Azerbaijan Ramin Gurbanov was awarded several times for his contributions to the development of justice system in Azerbaijan. Besides that, according to the decision of the Judicial-Legal Council of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ramin Gurbanov was awarded for his contributions to the effective and successful implementation of the World Bank projects on modernization of the Azerbaijan court system, for proper presentation of the country in the CEPEJ, for developing the «e-Court system», which was awarded within the Council of Europe`s «Crystal Scales of Justice» competition.
On the eve of celebration of the 15th anniversary of the work of the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice in the field of increasing efficiency and quality of justice in Europe Ramin Gurbanov`s contributions were acknowledged and appreciated.
By the decision of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences he was awarded for the scientific productivity, for the active participation in the work of the Academy of Sciences, for «effective presentation of Azerbaijan science in the international fora, for the organization on a high level for the first time in country of the international conference on artificial intellegence» as well as for the publication of the 3 volumes international encyclopedic edition on court systems.
In December 2018 he was awarded by the medal named after professor Rovshan Mustafayev.