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Are Financial Burdens Preventing Access to Justice in Southeast European Judicial Systems?

Establishing and maintaining effective judicial systems with the fulfilment of the procedural human rights and access to justice are the goals of every modern country. The right of access to justice is granted by the provisions of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and its importance is underline by the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. The right of access to justice must be 'practical and effective'. For the right of access to be effective, an individual must 'have a clear, practical opportunity to challenge an act that is an interference with his rights'. Since the protection of rights in democratic societies is entrusted to the judiciary institutions, the question of the effective exercise of access to these institutions and the protection of the rights of citizens in proceedings before them is especially important when citizens are faced with excessive procedural costs. The right of access to court demands that financial burden of civil justice must not form an insurmountable obstacle for exercising of this right. This is even more pronounced in the context of economic crises and the increasingly economic and socially vulnerable groups of citizens. Therefore, economic obstacles to legal proceedings, especially for those in economically weak position, have to be eliminated. Providing practical and effective access to justice means also taking into account the individual's capacity, as well as individual's financial status. Regulations on attorney's fees and legal aid are therefore important in the relationship between financial burdens of the civil justice and the right of access to court. Generally, in a lot of European countries, basic principles on attorney's fees exist and the remuneration has to be adequate and proportionate to the value and complexity of the case. Often, hourly rates are applied. In some countries, there are also possibilities of lump- sum agreements, conditional fee arrangement ('no win, no fee') or agreements 'paid on result'. In order to preserve the right to access to justice, furthermore, countries are establishing a system of legal aid. But the statutory conditions that the applicant for legal aid must meet to prove his or her financial status could be serious obstacle in achieving timely and effective legal assistance. Author will analyzed the relationship between financial burdens of the civil justice in Southeast European Judicial Systems and the right of access to justice in those countries. Furthermore, the current law on attorney's fees and legal aid of the Southeast European countries will be discussed, with emphasis on Croatia as a young country of the European Union.

financial burdens of civil justice; right of access to justice; attorney's fees; legal aid; Southeast European Judicial Systems

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