All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors as an organizational form of prosecutorial self-governance in Ukraine

The article is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors as an organizational form of prosecutorial self-government in Ukraine. It is noted that the Law of Ukraine “On the Prosecutor’s Office” defines the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors as the highest body of prosecutorial self-government. However, such a definition is pathetic. In fact, the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors has the highest status only in comparison with the Council of Prosecutors of Ukraine. It is determined that “conference” as the name of the body actually indicates a lower level or significance of this body of prosecutorial self-government compared to the relevant congresses as self- government bodies in other justice institutions. It is proposed to call the highest body of prosecutorial self-government a congress. The fact that the name of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors in the legislation begins with a lowercase letter is a disadvantage that does not give the Conference of Prosecutors any credibility. The author suggests that the name of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors should begin with a capital letter. The article analyzes the powers of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors and concludes that some of them currently require clarification with due regard to the current legislation. The author proves that according to democratic principles, the number of delegates to the conference should proportionally correspond to the number of prosecutors they represent. The author sees a violation of these principles in the formation of the composition of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors. The author also examines the specifics of the procedure for holding the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors. The author identifies the following stages in its work: 1) preparation for the Conference; 2) introductory part; 3) the stage of consideration and resolution of the agenda issues on the merits; 4) closing of the Conference. The author examines the issue of publicizing decisions of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors. It is determined that the legislation does not actually contain provisions on the procedure for making public (publishing or otherwise bringing to the attention of prosecutors) the decisions of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors. The author concludes that decisions of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors, especially those which define the rights and obligations of prosecutors, should be made public. This can be done on the official websites of the Office of the Prosecutor General and the Council of Prosecutors. The powers of the Council of Prosecutors of Ukraine should include its obligation to publish the acts of the All-Ukrainian Conference of Prosecutors. Based on the results of the study, the author formulates proposals for improving the legislation.