THE ROLE OF THE EU AS A PROMOTER OF JUDICIARY REFORM IN CANDIDATE COUNTRIES

THE CASE OF VETTING PROCESS IN ALBANIA

Abstract

The European Union (EU) enlargement policy has been considered the most effective tool of the EU as an “EU external governance” in exporting democracy, the rule of law, fundamental freedoms, and other values on which the EU is founded in third countries. Considering the lessons learned from previous accession cases– especially Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia, the EU approach to addressing the rule of law reforms early in the accession process shifted toward a bold strategy. This paper analyses the role of the EU as a promoter of judiciary reform in candidate countries, focusing on the vetting process in Albanian. The paper argues that a dilemma exists between legal compliance with EU standards and implementing reforms. While the EU, through judiciary reform, aims to transform the Albanian judiciary system in compliance with the Justice and Home Affairs acquis, political polarisation in Albania has hampered institutional set-up, effectiveness, independence, and the fight against corruption. Moreover, the vetting process has paralysed the judiciary system by increasing the backlog and delaying the length of proceedings. By adopting a dogmatic legal methodology, the paper provides a detailed theoretical discussion of the EU’s external dimension as a (legal) normative power and analyses the Europeanization of the judiciary system in Albania. Moreover, the paper assesses the impact of judiciary reform and discusses the extent to which judiciary reform in Albania is considered successful.