Rule of Law

The EU Commission published its latest Rule of Law Report on Friday. The Luxembourg judiciary is working efficiently, the Commission found. The timeframe for court cases coming to a hearing has also increased.[1]

Efficient and slower. The two words appear in the same sentence. They are not contradictory. The judiciary can be efficient, processing cases competently, and still take longer, because there are more cases to process. The efficiency is in the work. The delay is in the queue. The queue is growing.[1]

The Commission notes that a new tribunal is being created, which should increase the administrative efficiency of the judiciary. The tribunal does not exist yet. The efficiency does not exist yet. The queue exists now.[1]

Whistleblowers

On corruption, the Commission notes that whistleblower reports have increased this year. This could mean more corruption. It could also mean more people willing to report it. The report does not distinguish between the two. The increase is a fact. The interpretation is not.[1]

Discussions on codes of conduct for locally elected politicians are ongoing and have not yet been concluded. The discussions are ongoing. The codes of conduct are not. The politicians are in office. The codes are not. The discussions will continue. The codes will follow. The timeline is unspecified.[1]

Digitalisation

The Commission's main conclusions are that the digitalisation of court proceedings should proceed more quickly, and that the reform of free access to official documents should be finalised. "Should proceed more quickly" is the diplomatic version of "is too slow". "Should be finalised" is the diplomatic version of "is not finished".[1]

The justice system is efficient and slower. The whistleblowers are reporting more. The codes of conduct are being discussed. The digitalisation should be faster. The document access reform should be finished. The EU Commission wrote a report. The report says what should happen. The should is doing a lot of work in that sentence.[1]

Two weeks ago, the Diekirch Bar said violence against lawyers happens on a regular basis. Two weeks ago, the immigration director was questioned as a suspect. Two weeks ago, the prosecutor general flagged an information-sharing gap. This week, the EU Commission said the digitalisation of courts should proceed more quickly. The report is a snapshot. The report is accurate. The report does not change anything. The report describes the system. The system continues.[1]