Serbia – annual report 2023

Details: Published: September 4, 2024

Strategic Framework

Legal Policy Starting Point

Serbia applied for EU membership on December 22, 2009, and accession negotiations began on June 21, 2014. Nevertheless, the country continues to pursue an unclear course between Russia and the European Union.

There are also domestic political tensions. The wave of protests among the population following school shootings, among other things, is also directed against the government as a whole. The Kosovo issue remains controversial in domestic politics and led to armed clashes in the summer of 2023. Irrespective of this, there are many Europe-oriented organizations in need of support.

The European Union sees an increased need for adjustment in the areas of “judiciary” and “fundamental rights” as well as “justice, freedom and security”.

In April 2022, the incumbent President was confirmed in office. On December 17, 2023, in addition to the regular local elections, a parliamentary election was held three years earlier than planned, which was the third election in less than four years and was followed by protests due to alleged irregularities.

In view of the tensions between Serbia and Kosovo, the European External Action Service is mediating together with Germany and France to bring the parties back into a constructive dialog.

Overall Concept

IRZ has been supporting Serbia on its path to the European Union in line with the Western Balkans Strategy since 2000. In the projects funded by the Federal Ministry of Justice and the Federal Foreign Office, the focus is on the effective application of the law in accordance with the principles of the rule of law and the legal provisions of the European Union. IRZ emphasizes the importance of a clear orientation towards continental European legal principles and models in order to prevent hybrid solutions. It also strengthens cooperation between legal professionals from Serbia and the entire region.

IRZ’s partners include the Constitutional Court, the law faculties of the Universities of Belgrade, Novi Sad and Kragujevac and the Institute of Comparative Law.

Focus of Activity in 2023

Constitutional Law, Human Rights and their Enforceability

Participation of the Constitutional Court of Serbia in the final conference of the project “Promotion of constitutional complaints as the main means of protecting fundamental rights in North Macedonia”, jointly organized with the Constitutional Court of North Macedonia

Administration of Justice

Creation and distribution of the journal “Kontinentalno pravo: časopis za održiv i skladan razvoj prava, (Continental Law: Journal for Sustainable and Expedient Legal Development), KoPra”, issue 2023
Conference “Continental European Heritage” in Belgrade on the occasion of the presentation of the new 2023 edition of the journal “Kontinentalno pravo: časopis za održiv i skladan razvoj prava, (Continental Law: Journal for Sustainable and Expedient Legal Development), KoPra”

Basic and Further Training

Study trip of the programme “Master in European Integration” of the Faculty of Law of the University of Belgrade to European institutions
Course on “Legal terminology” for German-speaking lawyers with the Novi Sad Faculty of Law in hybrid format with a final weekend as a face-to-face event
Lecture on legal education in Germany at the Novi Sad and Kragujevac law faculties
Annual workshop for German-speaking IRZ alumni in Belgrade on the topic “Current developments in German law” (sponsored by the publishing house C.H. BECK, Munich)

Project funded by the European Union

EU Twinning project “Reinforcement of consumer protection in Serbia as a response to the new market challenges”

The EU Twinning project “Reinforcement of consumer protection in Serbia as a response to the new market challenges”, which IRZ carried out under the leadership of the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic, was successfully completed in May 2023. The project, which was aimed at

the Ministry of Trade, Tourism and Telecommunications of the Republic of Serbia, was launched in June 2021 – still under pandemic conditions. The aim of this 24-month project was to respond appropriately to both the obligations arising from EU membership and the challenges of the modern market by strengthening administrative and institutional structures in the field of consumer protection in Serbia. The project aimed to improve the institutional and administrative capacities of the relevant Serbian actors in the field of consumer protection for access to the internal market.

Specifically, the provisions of the Serbian Consumer Protection Act and the associated regulations were harmonized with EU legislation. The project experts mobilized by IRZ identified current legal priorities, carried out a gap analysis for existing legislation and prepared draft laws and regulations on consumer protection.

A further objective was to contribute to the effective legal enforcement of consumer protection in the partner state. This was done through a targeted strengthening of institution-building in relation to cross-border issues and an improvement in cooperation between relevant institutions in the area of consumer protection. In addition, the short-term expert teams also developed and led training courses and workshops on ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) with ADR institutions as the target group in order to make a sustainable contribution to the establishment of a functioning ADR system for consumer protection in Serbia. In addition, the project addressed new market challenges such as consumer protection in online transactions and thus supported capacity building among the relevant stakeholders. The creation and dissemination of a handbook will ensure the dissemination of knowledge beyond the end of the project.

At the end of March, a high-ranking delegation from the Ministry of Trade, Tourism and Telecommunications and representatives of Serbian ADR organizations travelled to Berlin, Kehl and Strasbourg. The technical discussions at the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection, the Federation of German Consumer Organizations, the Federal Universal Consumer Arbitration Service in Kehl and the European Parliament in Strasbourg were highlights of the project. The specialist conference in Belgrade in mid-May 2023, which was also attended by the German junior project and component managers, brought the project, which was characterized by very good and smooth cooperation between all project participants, to a worthy conclusion.

Outlook

Cooperation with the official authorities in Serbia continues to be hampered by the country's unclear stance on the Ukraine conflict and Kosovo. IRZ will therefore continue to focus its activities on cooperation with law faculties. IRZ also intends to continuously strengthen cooperation with institutions and individual national experts who are dedicated to the continental European legal tradition and to research on German law and its reception.