Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. U.S. Federal Judge James Wynn paid a working visit to Mongolia on October 2-13 at the invitation of the U.S. Embassy in Ulaanbaatar and the Mongolian Judges’ Association to share his experience communicating with the public about legal proceedings and best practices in judicial transparency and independence.

During his working visit to Mongolia, Judge James Wynn met with the representatives of the Judicial Disciplinary Committee, Mongolian Judges’ Association, Criminal Court, etc., taking part in discussions and dialogues themed, “Judge and the Public”, “Challenges for Judges in Communicating with the Public”, “Access to Justice: The Function and Power of the Supreme Court”, and “Open Judiciary: Public Relations and Perceptions”, in which members of the Judicial Disciplinary Committee, judges, researchers, media representatives, and more than 60 people participated.

In recent years, there has been an increasing tendency to portray judges negatively, such as attacking the reputation of judges, spreading information from unknown sources on social networks, and using citizens' lack of legal knowledge and information to create misconceptions. The participants of the discussions emphasized that the perception of judicial authority will be changed by making the courts transparent, and open and presenting their decisions to the public.

Regarding the working visit of the U.S. judge, the representatives of the Mongolian Judges’ Association noted that there will be a clear improvement in the skills of the courts and that it will help to expand the activities of the Mongolian Judges’ Association, increase public trust in the courts, and ensure the independence of judges, which is a guarantee of human rights and freedom.

Head of the Judicial General Council (JGC), D.Zumberellkham, pointed out that the judges and the public are vital and important pillars of the judiciary. He then said, "Mongolia has been transitioning to the communal government since 1924. Even though there was a constitution, it is safe to say that the judicial branch began to develop in content after the transition to democratic governance in 1992 and the adoption of the new constitution. The sector, which has achieved considerable success in a short period of time, has defined the goal of forming a stable and controlled government by 2030. Court proceedings should be citizen-oriented, transparent, and understandable”.

Judge James Wynn is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, having been appointed by President Obama in 2009 and confirmed by Senate acclamation in 2010. In the twenty years before his federal judicial career, he served as a judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals and briefly as a justice on the Supreme Court of North Carolina.