Assessing the Union's Rule of Law: Lessons from the 2025 shadow report

30 October 2025
Policy Dialogue

Speakers: Florian Geyer, Head of Unit for Rule of Law, DG JUST; Dr. Barbara Grabowska-Moroz, Director of the CEU Democracy Institute's Rule of Law Clinic; Prof. Dimitry Kochenov, Founder and Co-director of the CEU Democracy Institute's Rule of Law Clinic; Javier Carbonell, Policy Analyst, European Policy Centre; Prof. Laurent Pech, Co-Director of the Rule of Law Clinic at CEU Democracy Institute; Tineke Strik, Member of the European Parliament

Moderator: Joelle Grogan, Academic Co-director of the CEU Democracy Institute's Rule of Law Clinic

The rule of law is a cornerstone of democracy and European Union legitimacy. Yet, deteriorating standards in several member states fuel corruption risks, undermine fair elections and erode mutual trust across the Union. While EU institutions are tasked with safeguarding the rule of law, the European Commission’s Annual Rule of Law Reports still do not assess the EU’s own performance in this area.

To address this gap, the Rule of Law Clinic at the Central European University Democracy Institute in Budapest has produced the second edition of its Shadow Rule of Law Report. The report analyses developments in access to justice, shortcomings in the EU’s anti-corruption framework and emerging problems in the internal market dimension. It also examines how geopolitical dynamics shape the Union’s enforcement of its own laws and institutional standards.

This hybrid Policy Dialogue, co-organised by the European Policy Centre, its Connecting Europe project and the Rule of Law Clinic at the CEU Democracy Institute, presented the report’s main findings and brought together EU policymakers, civil society and academics to discuss the rule of law challenges facing the EU.

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