About the project

Judicial Selection Under Scrutiny: Judicial Independence, Lawfulness and Merit – JUDGMERIT project (J5-4583) is funded by the Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency (ARIS).

Duration of the project

1 October 2022 – 30 September 2025.

Description of the project

Independent and high-quality judiciary is the cornerstone of the rule of law and the guarantor of democracy. It is therefore essential that the best law graduates become judges, that the best judges are promoted to senior positions in the judiciary, and that selection and appointment procedures ensure the quality, judicial independence and lawfulness of courts. This guarantees public confidence in the judiciary and adequate protection of the rights of parties.

The main research question of the project is: To what extent and how does the selection of Slovenian judges take into account European standards of judicial independence, lawfulness of courts and merits of candidates, and does it take them into account to a sufficient extent? While trying to establish whether the procedures in Slovenia comply with European standards, we will also answer an inherent question: How do the key subjects in the judicial selection procedures in Slovenia assess the qualities that a good judge should have? The project will use an empirical research approach to:

1. Identify and analyze European standards concerning judicial independence and the lawfulness of courts,
2. Define merit that should be the primary guiding principle in judicial selection procedures,
3. Analyse a wide range of issues related to the selection, appointment and promotion of Slovenian judges (e.g. the problematic role of the legislature, procedural guarantees, etc.).

The project aims to fill large scientific gaps in the judicial selection procedures both in Slovenia and in the wider European context. We aim to contribute to a better understanding of the conditions under which a high-quality and independent judiciary can develop. By analysing the currently still unclearly defined European standards on judicial independence and the lawfulness of courts, we will reduce uncertainties in their interpretation. We will set out a theoretical-empirical definition of merit that will help us understand the qualities of a good judge. Finally, we will use the above standards and findings to analyse and critically evaluate the selection procedures in Slovenia.

Project Team

Project Leader

Samo Bardutzky, PhD, Associate Professor – Head of the Department of Constitutional Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana

Members

Mojca Plesničar, PhD, Assistant Professor – Researcher focusing on sentencing and decision-making processes in (criminal) law

Katarina Zajc, PhD, Professor – Head of the Department of Legal and Economic Science at the Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana, and former member of the Judicial Council of the Republic of Slovenia

Grega Strban, PhD, Professor – Head of the Department of Labour Law and Social Security Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana, and former vice-president of the Judicial Council of the Republic of Slovenia

Saša Zagorc, PhD, Professor – Dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana

Tilen Štajnpihler Božič, PhD, Assistant Professor – Head of the Department for Legal Theory and Sociology of Law

Kristina Čufar, PhD, Assistant Professor – Assistant Professor focusing on the field of Legal Theory and Sociology of law

Marjan Kos, Master of Law, Teaching Assistant – Teaching Assistant focusing on Constitutional law, Administrative law and EU law

Mohor Fajdiga, Master of Law, Teaching Assistant – Teaching Assistant and researcher focusing on Constitutional law and EU law, particularly on judicial independence and freedom of expression of judges

Ana Samobor, Master of Law, Teaching Assistant – Teaching Assistant focusing on Constitutional law, particularly on Human rights law and Migration and asylum law

Saša Šest – Technical personnel

Urh Šelih – student of the Master’s degree programme in Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Ljubljana, substantive and technical support of the research team