The September 16 ruling did not bring the legal proceedings against the four former KLA leaders to an end. The parties are preparing for the appeals phase and must notify the court by November 27 whether they will challenge the first-instance judgment. The Specialist Chambers have explained what may be examined on appeal and how the proceedings are expected to continue.
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More than three weeks after the ruling against Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Jakup Krasniqi and Rexhep Selimi was delivered, the deadline for notifying the court of an appeal is approaching.
The initial deadline for indicating whether the judgment would be challenged was mid-October. Following a request from the Defence, the Appeals Panel extended it until November 27.
The Defence requested the extension, citing the complexity of the case and the fact that its teams had not yet received the judgment translated into Albanian.
The Specialist Chambers told RTK that, so far, no submission has been published showing that any party has filed a notice of appeal or indicated which parts of the ruling it intends to challenge.
According to the court, the appeals procedure begins when a notice of appeal is filed.
The Appeals Panel may examine claims of legal or factual errors, as well as errors in sentencing. During the proceedings, the parties may request that additional evidence be presented, specifying the factual finding of the Trial Panel to which it relates. The Appeals Court may uphold, overturn or amend the first-instance judgment. If circumstances warrant it, it may also order a retrial before the Trial Panel.
The court has pointed out that the proceedings leading to a decision may take less time if the challenge concerns only the sentence.
Experts familiar with the proceedings and legal professionals have commented on the challenges that the four former KLA leaders may face during the appeals phase.
“The duration will depend on how the Appeals Court handles the case. If it decides to reopen the trial, the proceedings could take even longer. Based on previous decisions, we suspect that an appeals ruling may not be issued within the next 12 or 18 months,” said Ehat Miftaraj of KLI.
Lawyer Arbër Jashari said the parties would also face another challenge: implementing the latest amendments to the Law on the Specialist Chambers.
“I consider this law very favorable, but its implementation will be a long and challenging journey. The Specialist Chambers were established in partnership with the EU, so the issue also affects other parties. Kosovo must find a way to reach an agreement and convince its international partners to support the change,” he stressed.
In the September 16 judgment, Hashim Thaçi and Jakup Krasniqi were each sentenced to 25 years in prison, Kadri Veseli to 18 years, and Rexhep Selimi to 13 years.
