REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

CEFTA-2006 AND ANHANCING COMPETITIVENESS OF THE REGION - SOME SECTORAL ASPECTS
Ph.D. Sanja Đurđić
Assistant professor
THE RULE OF LAW AND INDEPENDENT JUDICIARY –
PREREQUISITES FOR REGIONAL COOPERATION AND
INTEGRATION WITH THE EU (CASE STUDY OF SERBIA)
Abstract:
The author discusses the significant theoretical and constitutional issue of governmental
organization based on the principle of the rule of law, separation of powers and the
corresponding question of the independent judiciary. The aim is to stress the significance
of achieving the separation of powers and independent judiciary system as necessary
presuppositions of democratic political environment, institutional and procedural
guarantees of the rule of law, legal state, basic human rights and civil liberties. It is
emphasized that the separation of powers and independent judiciary represent civilisational
inheritance and social values. The paper shows that the rule of law and independent
judiciary represent significant prerequisites for the integration of Serbia into the EU.
Independent judiciary and the rule of law assume the central position in the intensified
process of regional cooperation and the economic integrations. The paper emphasizes that
the need to establish the independent judiciary in the Republic of Serbia is prioritized in the
process of reform by the European Commission and the Council of Europe, and therefore
must be completed. The author demonstrates that the rule of law and independent judiciary
ensure legal security necessary for economic integrations. Without legal security and legal
certainty, which result from the rule of law, economic integrations would not be feasible
either. The paper concludes that foreign investments and economic integrations require
legal certainty and security which are the consequence of the fully and truly implemented
rule of law.
Key words: rule of law, independent judiciary, economic integrations, regional cooperation,
European integrations, legal security
INTRODUCTION
The rule of law is an ancient ideal and form of governmental organization according
to which decisions should be made by applying known principles or laws, without the
intervention of discretion in their application. This form of governmental organization is
intended to be a safeguard against arbitrary governance. In Anglo-American tradition, the
most influential version of the rule of law is the one popularized by British jurist A.V.
Dicey in 1885 (Dicey, 1959). Dicey’s doctrine on the rule of law is a threefold one: the
absolute supremacy or predominance of regular law as opposed to the influence of arbitrary
power and the absence of discretionary authority on the part of the government; equality
before the law; the constitution in the result of the ordinary law of the land developed by
the judges on a case by case basis. The rule of law involves: the rights of individuals are
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