The EU, Justice Reforms and Their Impact on Access to Justice: The Case of Albania

This contribution explores how key developments in the justice sector have improved people's access to justice in Albania. After being granted EU candidate status in 2014, the EU underlined the critical need for Albania to further consolidate progress in some areas, such as judicial reform and fight against corruption. This included to remove barriers to accessing justice, such as the inability of disadvantaged groups like Roma and victims of domestic violence to make use of legal aid and benefit from social inclusion policies. To gain a more accurate picture of the legal needs of the Albanian population, the author and her team collected data in a four-step process, consisting of a household survey, an online poll, interviews and focus groups. This contribution presents the key findings from the data collected, shedding light on people’s understanding of, confidence in and satisfaction with the Albanian justice system.