Development of Trust in Courts in the Czech Republic and Other Visegrad Countries

Abstract

The level to which people trust the judicial system of their country is of essential importance to every society. They are, after all, judges who are responsible for protecting human rights as well as identifying their limits in their judgements. That is also the reason for which many people consider judges as far greater protectors of individual rights and freedoms than the legislators. This paper traces the development of public trust in courts in the Czech Republic and uses the Visegrad countries to provide a broader context for the analysis. After providing a definition of public trust and explaining the importance of public trust in judiciary, the paper concentrates on analysis of empirical data regarding the development of general trust, trust in judicial system and trust in other institutions in Visegrad countries (parliaments, presidents and the police) during the last 25 years. Finally, the author identifies the most relevant causes of increase as well as decrease of trust in Czech judicial system. The paper is based on publicly available data regarding trust of people in courts and other institutions.

Keywords: trust, judiciary, legitimacy, Czech Republic, Visegrad countries