Watch: The Promise of Legal Empowerment
In countries around the world, the rule of law and the integrity of the judicial system is eroding, with “frequent attacks on the independence of judges, lawyers, prosecutors,” (UN HR Council Res. 44/8). Judges are summarily transferred or expelled following politically-sensitive decisions, lawyers are criminalized for defending groups targeted for abuse, and community justice workers are unable to advance rights when their role is not formally recognized. As climate change advances, democratic backsliding continues, and deep inequalities endure, justice systems are increasingly tested.
The Bernstein Institute for human rights supports the work of Faculty Director Professor Margaret Satterthwaite, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, to address attacks against judges, lawyers, and community justice workers. The Institute examines ways to strengthen protective mechanisms for those targeted due to their work to uphold the rule of law and human rights, and explores how established principles concerning the independence of judges and lawyers can best respond to contemporary challenges facing judicial personnel.
One essential response to these contemporary challenges, forming a core tenet of the Bernstein Institute’s approach, is to take a close, critical look at justice systems to consider the extent to which they meet the needs of those seeking justice. The field of legal empowerment has demonstrated that the rule of law is enhanced when those most directly impacted by injustice play a central role in seeking remedies. A system that actively engages those who have too often been excluded is made stronger and more resilient to ongoing threats, such as populism and disaffection with the judicial system.