The Chancellor of Justice Tuomas Pöysti has submitted his report for 2024 to the Parliament and the Government.
In 2024, a total of 1987 complaints were filed with the Chancellor of Justice while 2084 complaints were resolved. In the previous year, the Office of the Chancellor of Justice received 1668 complaints and resolved 1862. In 2024, the Chancellor of Justice continued the efforts to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of legality oversight focusing more strongly on structural oversight. A total of 43 in-house initiatives were launched by the Chancellor of Justice in 2024.
As for the oversight of Government activities, the number of cases increased particularly in the area of legislative projects. In 2024, 138 requests for opinions on legislative proposals were reviewed, 66 opinions were issued and 26 preliminary examinations of legislative proposals were carried out. In the context of ex ante control of government decision-making, of all the cases handled at the Government plenary sessions 1498 cases were examined and at the sessions held with the President of the Republic 400 were examined. A total of 398 requests for corrections were issued; in other words, an order for rectification was given in 21% of the cases. 73% of the requests for corrections were concerned to legal matters.
The Chancellor of Justice's 2024 report contains a series of thematic articles on key findings and actions in the field of legality oversight as well as documentation describing legal praxis. The article "When is it advisable to request the opinion of the Constitutional Committee on a government proposal and how does the Chancellor of Justice monitor this?" discusses the Chancellor of Justice's ex ante control of legislative projects. In reality, Government proposals have demonstrably been referred to the Constitutional Committee for assessment on rather flimsy grounds, a point to which the Constitutional Committee has repeatedly drawn attention in recent times.
The Chancellor of Justice will in future adopt a more systematic approach to ex ante control to determine whether it is legally justified and necessary to request that a draft be assessed by the Constitutional Committee. The Government is duty-bound to prepare proposals that are in compliance with the Constitution, international human rights obligations and EU law. In its proposals, the Government must demonstrate that these requirements are met or make a duly substantiated proposal to change the interpretation of the Constitution.
In recent years, court training has been criticized. This theme is addressed to in the article “Judicial training”. Striking a balance between the training needs of apprentice district judges and the efficient organisation of the court's activities is challenging.
In line with established practice, the report also includes articles by the Chancellor of Justice and the Deputy Chancellor of Justice.
Chancellor of Justice Tuomas Pöysti discusses the demands imposed by digitalisation on legislation. On the one hand, it is advisable to safeguard fundamental rights and good governance through pro-digital legislation; on the other hand, it is important to ensure that the regulatory burden does not become excessive and create unnecessary barriers to innovation and productivity.
Deputy Chancellor of Justice Mikko Puumalainen examines the independence and role of the supreme guardians of the law. According to the Deputy Chancellor of Justice, it might be appropriate to consider bolstering the independence and autonomy of the legality oversight exercised by the Chancellor of Justice through an amendment to the Constitution.
The annual Report of the Chancellor of Justice for 2024 in Finnish
The annual Report of the Chancellor of Justice for 2024 in Swedish
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Video: The Chancellor of Justice Tuomas Pöysti: Enhancing Productivity and Legal Security with Digitalization-Friendly Legislation
