Over the last four years, USAID embedded within the Kosovo court system a total of fifteen Backlog Reduction Legal Officers (BRLOs), who served in basic court branches and the Appellate Court.  Since the program began, the main highlights of their work have been the introduction of case screening pilot concepts into courts and the reduction of backlogged cases.  BRLOs have reduced the backlog by over 80 percent in Kosovo’s basic courts.  

In Kosovo, it is often thought that court efficiency will increase with an increased number of judges.  However, the effectiveness of the program in addressing the backlog of cases demonstrated to Kosovo courts that it is not only the number of judges that contribute to court efficiency, but it is the work of the professional associates that is the key.  Thus, the Kosovo judicial institutions hired, through a merit-based process, 13 of USAID's BRLOs to continue their important work in screening cases. This step ensured that the knowledge and skills of the BRLOs were effectively transferred to the courts.  

The screening of cases by BRLOs is now institutionalized within the Kosovo courts and is directly contributing to court efficiency through the continued reduction of the overall case backlog of civil and criminal cases.  BRLOs is an initiative implemented through USAID’s Justice System Strengthening Program.