The past year was also marked by the spirit of removing barriers faced by disadvantaged groups of people

In the final months of 2025, we worked intensively on making the physical, digital, and social environment more accessible so that the Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic and its Chancellery would be more inclusive not only towards the public participating in the court’s hearings, but also in terms of job opportunities for potential employees.

When planning and implementing individual steps, we initially drew on cooperation with the Slovak Blind and Partially Sighted Union (UNSS) and the Slovak Union of Physically Disabled People, whose representatives were willing to tell us about the specific barriers they most often encounter. The internal working team subsequently analyzed in detail the legislative requirements for removing barriers, as well as the possibilities for their removal.

From the initial meetings with representatives of the UNSS, it became clear that an often-overlooked challenge for disadvantaged groups of people is communication barriers. The Chancellery of the Supreme Administrative Court approaches their removal primarily by raising awareness on this topic. Therefore, in December last year, shortly after the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, training for judges and employees was organized, including on the topic of removing obstacles in communication with disadvantaged people, which we informed the public about in a press release “Ethics Day” at the Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic – Najvyšší správny súd Slovenskej republiky.

Several modifications have also been made to remove physical barriers. A bell is located at approximately waist height by the entrance door, allowing disabled people to call for assistance. This is also available for parking in the garage, where there is a separate parking space for wheelchair users. Guide strips on the floor in the reception area will lead to a social facility adapted for wheelchair users.

All glass doors in the building are clearly marked and the lifts that take the public to the courtrooms are equipped with an audio announcement, with buttons marked in Braille to facilitate navigation. Braille is also used in each of the three courtrooms on information boards that display a tactile map of the space and instructions on the rules of conduct during the hearing. A wheelchair-accessible chair is also available in the courtrooms.

When it comes to limiting digital barriers, we are committed to being an inclusive website operator with a strong focus on digital accessibility. Several of our employees have participated in training on website accessibility and we have set up our internal processes to largely comply with accessibility standards even when creating digital documents intended for publication. The Chancellery of the Supreme Administrative Court also cooperates intensively with the UNSS in this regard and has a dedicated employee who, in addition to other tasks, also acts as the (website) accessibility officer.

“I am extremely grateful to everyone who helped implement the above-described steps aimed at improving the environment of our institution for disadvantaged groups of people. I would especially like to highlight the very beneficial cooperation with the UNSS, which will continue in the near future, for example in the form of providing special training for registry employees, so that they can subsequently fully provide the necessary assistance to disabled persons in studying case materials,” said Zuzana Kyjac, head of the Chancellery of the Supreme Administrative Court.

Bell at the entrance to the Supreme Administrative Court building. Photo © Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic.

The guide strip and reception of the Supreme Administrative Court. Photo © Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic.

Guide strip to the social facilities for the disabled in the Supreme Administrative Court building. Photo © Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic.

Braille instruction in front of the courtroom of the Supreme Administrative Court. Photo © Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic.

The door of the large meeting room of the Supreme Administrative Court. Photo © Supreme Administrative Court of the Slovak Republic.