Topic Guide: Judicial Corruption

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime manages UNCAC monitoring and reporting processes. It carries out research on judicial reform, including tackling corruption in the judiciary and undertakes in-country fact-finding and assessment missions. It formerly hosted the Judicial Integrity Group (JIG) that drafted the Bangalore Principles. JIG is now hosted by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). The website can be accessed here.  

The UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers was created in 1994 by the UN Commission on Human Rights, to address attacks on the independence of judges, lawyers and court officials. The mandate of the special rapporteur is to: identify and record attacks on the independence of the judiciary, lawyers and court officials; inquire into any substantial allegations and to report conclusions and recommendations; report progress achieved in protecting and enhancing judicial independence; identify ways and means to improve the judicial system, and make concrete recommendations. The website can be accessed here.  

Centre for the Independence of Judges and Lawyers (CIJL)/International Commission of Jurists. The CIJL helped formulate and carries out work on the UN Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary and the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers. It monitors the implementation of these principles and intervenes with governments where jurists are harassed. The website can be accessed here.  

Judicial Integrity Group are the authors and guardians of the Bangalore Principles on Judicial Conduct. The website has a useful resources section that sets out JIG documents as well as other documents covering UN resolutions and standards concerning judicial integrity, regional standards, examples of codes of conduct, donor guides to judicial conduct, details of conferences and court decisions concerning the discipline of judges. The website can be accessed here   

The European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice aims to improve the efficiency and functioning of justice in the member states of the Council of Europe, and the development of the implementation of the instruments adopted by the Council of Europe. It consists of experts from all 47 member states and its work is assisted by a secretariat. Its activities include analysing the justice systems of the member states, assessing their challenges and preparing benchmarks, defining instruments of measure and means of evaluation, developing reports and organising hearings. Country reports are available on the website and they also have details of cooperation programmes with countries that are not members of the Council of Europe. The website can be accessed here.  

The Consultative Council of European Judges (CCJE) is an advisory body of the Council of Europe on issues related to the independence, impartiality and competence of judges. It is the first body within an international organisation to be composed exclusively of judges. The CCJE adopts opinions for the attention of the Committee of Ministers on issues regarding the status of judges and the exercise of their functions. The website can be accessed here  

The Commonwealth Magistrates’ and Judges’ Association (CMJA) includes members from all Commonwealth judiciaries. One of its aims is to secure judicial independence, and fighting corruption is a priority area (see Limassol Conclusions in International norms and standards above). It has agreed several seminal standards for the judiciary and has a Judicial Education Programme. It is the repository for Commonwealth judiciaries’ codes of conduct/ethics. The website can be accessed here.  

Magistrats Européens pour la Démocratie et les Libertés (MEDEL) is an association of European judges and judges’ bodies that aims to bring together European judiciaries to protect judicial independence and the democratisation of the judiciary, to promote the judiciary as a public service that allows for citizens’ control over its functioning and to defend the rights of minorities, especially immigrants. They organise conferences, publish articles and record threats to the judiciary across the wider European region (not just the countries of the EU) and the website lists activities they support, including training for judges and prosecutors as well as a variety of projects on tackling corruption and crime. The website can be accessed here.  

IFES rule of law programme focuses on judicial independence as well as building integrity and tackling corruption in the judiciary. The website can be accessed here.  

International Association of Judges (IAJ) consists of members of national associations of judges and focuses on safeguarding judicial independence and the judiciary’s role in guaranteeing freedom and human rights. The website can be accessed here. 

International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) assists countries pursuing accountability for past mass atrocity or human rights abuse. It supports, among other activities, prosecuting perpetrators, and documenting and acknowledging violations. The website can be accessed here.  

International Development Law Association (IDLO) provides training courses on judicial corruption and justice sector reform in post-conflict environments. The website can be accessed here.  

International Bar Association (IBA) provides training courses for judges and lawyers and undertakes fact-finding missions to countries where the rule of law is threatened. It encourages compliance with fair trial standards and monitors legal proceedings. The website can be accessed here.  

American Bar Association (ABA) supports legal reform, including judicial reform programmes, and offers technical assistance in Europe and Eurasia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Asia and the Pacific.  

Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) is responsible for monitoring observance of the Guiding Principles for the Fight against Corruption and implementation of the international legal instruments adopted in pursuit of the Programme of Action against Corruption. Expert teams are appointed to evaluate member countries, and to prepare country reports for discussion and adoption at plenary sessions. The website can be accessed here.  

Due Process of Law Foundation focuses on legal reform, including strengthening judiciaries against corruption in Latin and Central America. The website can be accessed here.  

The Law Association for Asia and the Pacific (LAWASIA) is a professional association of bar councils, law associations, lawyers, law firms and corporations that promotes the rule of law throughout the Asia-Pacific region. The website can be accessed here.  

Arab Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession (ACIJLP) is a regional organisation that supports judicial independence, the rule of law and the protection of human rights in Egypt and other Arab countries. The website can be accessed here.