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Success Story

Photo: USAID/BiH/Kasey Vannett

Zana Perla (left) checks on the status of her case in Sarajevo’s Municipal Court, where a USAID-supported computerized case management system keeps documents related to the case together.

“It was fast and efficient. Now I have an easy way to track my documents and case progress whenever I need to,” said Zana Perla, of the service she found at Sarajevo’s Municipal Court.

When Zana Perla went to Sarajevo’s Municipal Court to check on the status of her court case, she gave the clerk her case number and was found out in just a few minutes. “It was fast and efficient,” she said. “Now I have an easy way to track my documents and case progress whenever I need to.”

Delays and backlogs have plagued Bosnia and Herzegovina’s courts for years. But recent court administration reforms have dramatically improved the efficiency and transparency of the courts.

USAID developed a computerized case management system that assigns each case a unique number that ties together all related documentation in a central database. Before, case documents were filed under different numbers in different locations, making reviews extremely time-consuming for judges. The new system allows court staffers and judges to have immediate access to all information related to a case with the touch of a finger.

USAID introduced the case numbering system to an additional 11 model courts nationwide. It is also helping with creating backlog reduction plans, remodeling court premises to be more customer-friendly and introducing a color-coded filing system for paper files.

The results are extraordinary. The Banja Luka District Court has reduced its backlog of cases by 45 percent after only one year. Zenica’s Municipal Court has noted a 34 percent reduction in the time it takes to process a case. Most importantly, citizens are benefiting while investors see that the costs and risks of doing business in Bosnia and Herzegovina have diminished.

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