The establishment of a self-regulating body of the Prosecutor rules out the chances of Ukraine’s prosecutor’s office being reformed

In 2015 a bill was passed in Ukraine relating to the prosecutor’s office. On the 15th April 2016 the section concerning the creation of a self-regulating body of the prosecutor entered into force. On 26th April 2016 the process of establishing new bodies of the Ukrainian prosecutor’s self-regulating body began: the Council of Prosecutors, and the Qualification and Disciplinary Commission. The council’s main role is to present the prosecutor general with candidates for managerial positions in prosecutor’s offices at all levels (including deputies of the prosecutor general). The commission’s main function is to present candidates for prosecutors at all levels and to consider disciplinary motions against them. The prosecutor general (appointed by the president, following approval from the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine) does not have the right to veto the decisions of these bodies. They therefore have full competences regarding personnel choices. At the last moment President Poroshenko made attempts to postpone the bill relating to the prosecutor’s self-regulating body from passing into law by another year. However, the draft of the related law was not dealt with in a timely manner.