Independence of the judiciary

• Author: Arjana Llano
• Position: Department of Justice, University 'Ismail Qemali', Vlore, Albania
• Pages: 109-115

Independence of the judiciary

Lecturer Arjana LLANO

1

Abstract

There are many factors which influence the independence of the judiciary. In a

decision making pro cess, judges, at any rate, must be able to act independently of a ny

direct or indir ect restriction, improper influence, inducement, pressure, thr eatening or

obstacle. The law should pr ovide explicit punishment measures ag ainst anyone who tries to

impose any of the above means upon the judges. Any judge should possess the inviolable

freedom of judging impar tially, by his/her consciousness and interpretation, and pursua nt

to law. However, this is often impossible for judges are frequently put under var ious

pressures that should be avoided. I have employed theor etical a nd pra ctical methods for

the purposes of this article . In conclusion, the resea rch results have shown a heavy

infringement of the independence of the judiciary in our country. There is a quite frequent

tendency to influence the judges’ decisions. Common violations of law and judicial

independence, to a large extent, r emain unnoticed and unpunished. A considerable number

of judges think that such tendencies have no significant influence on the mana gement of

justice.

Keywords: independence, judiciar y, law, justice.

JEL Classification: K40

1. Preliminary

The most diffused model of democracy is based on the separation of the

powers, which in normal circumstances implies the three branches of power

including executive, legislative and judicial power. It is impossible to speak of

separation of power in every aspect, because there are a considerable number of

issues that require interconnection and interrelation between the three powers.

Therefore, a democratic governing system should guarantee that different powers

have equal responsibility and force so as the balance between the powers may be

achieved.

The judicial independence is considered as the basis for the ruling of the

legal state. Many international documents and agreements, such as the Basic

Justice Principles of the United Nations and the European Charter on the Status of

Judges, emphasize the importance of judicial independence and try to explain the

key elements of independent justice. Although there is not a clear definition of the

term “judicial independence”, it may be generally stated that the extent of justice

independence is determined by two factors2:

- The first relates to the way judges are kept in safe from the improper

influence of third parties (individuals or institutions),

1 Arjana Llano - Department of Justice, University “Ismail Qemali”, Vlore, Albania, ariana-

llano@live.com

2 Russel/O’Brien (editors), Judicial Independence in the years of democracy, 2001