EC: “Some Progress” in the Judiciary, Two New Council Laws Adopted, Reform Strategy 56.9 Percent Implemented
In the series on the EC report: a new Judicial Council law, a new law on public prosecutors and a strategy to 2028. 221 judges and 67 prosecutors are still missing.
Skopje – The judiciary is rated with “some progress” in the European Commission’s 2026 report on North Macedonia, published on November 4. The Commission places the system between some and a moderate level of preparation, and singles out the new laws on the two councils that run the courts and the prosecution as the most important step.
The Law on the Judicial Council was adopted in December 2025 and, according to the report, largely meets the recommendations of the Venice Commission. In June 2026 it was amended again to answer the remaining remarks, among them pluralism in the selection of members who are not judges.
In June 2026 the new Law on the Council of Public Prosecutors was also adopted, which according to the Commission essentially follows the joint opinion of the Venice Commission. A new Law on civil procedure, laws on the salaries of judges and public prosecutors, and a May 2026 amendment to the Law on mediation were also adopted.
The Judicial Reform Strategy 2024–2028 is under way, and its implementation rate for 2025 is 56.9 percent. By the editorial calculation, this means that a little more than 43 percent of the planned part is still not completed.
Three new members of the Judicial Council have been appointed. In December 2025 the Council of Public Prosecutors elected a new president and deputy president, and in March 2026 a new Chief Public Prosecutor was elected. The Judicial Council adopted an anti-corruption strategy for 2026–2029, and the codes of ethics for judges and prosecutors are “overall in line with European standards”.
The Supreme Court issued ten principled legal opinions, stances and conclusions for a more uniform application of the laws. Asset declarations were verified for seven members of the Judicial Council and three members of the Council of Public Prosecutors, under the 2025 monitoring plan.
The report also lists the work that remains. Only 38 percent of the estimated court posts are filled, and the councils estimate that 221 more judges and 67 more prosecutors are needed. The recommendations for the coming year are to speed up the implementation of the strategy, to apply the new laws, to revise the Law on the Public Prosecutor’s Office on time and to fill the vacancies.
What was not announced: the deadline by which the recommendations would be met and the amount of funds planned for the new court posts. Such data are not in the relayed parts of the report.
Progress exists, and the report states that no progress was made towards adopting the relevant constitutional changes. They remain the key to opening the negotiations, according to the Council Conclusions of 2022.
MKNews Hub · Macedonia · November 10, 2026
