Back New Codes of Ethics adopted to strengthen integrity and accountability in Montenegro’s judiciary

Podgorica 10 November 2025
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New Codes of Ethics adopted to strengthen integrity and accountability in Montenegro’s judiciary

Montenegro has taken an important step forward in strengthening the integrity, professionalism, and accountability of its justice system. The new Codes of Ethics for Judges and Prosecutors have been officially adopted, marking a significant milestone in the ongoing efforts to build a more transparent and trustworthy judiciary.

The adoption of the new codes ensures a clearer and more modern ethical framework for judges and prosecutors, aligned with European standards. These documents reaffirm the key values of independence, impartiality, responsibility, and integrity, which are at the core of a fair and efficient justice system.

This achievement was supported under the EU–Council of Europe joint Programme Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye under the action Strengthening accountability of the judicial system and enhancing protection of victims' rights in Montenegro, which focuses on enhancing judicial independence and professionalism. Within this framework, work is already underway to develop practical guidelines that will help judges and prosecutors apply the ethical principles in their daily work and address citizens’ complaints. The guidelines will also provide examples of best practices and potential practical ethical challenges.

The adoption of these codes represents not only progress in promoting professional ethics but also an important contribution to Montenegro’s EU accession process, as it strengthens the rule of law and public trust in justice institutions.

Horizontal Facility III

The joint European Union and Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye” (Horizontal Facility III) is a co-operation initiative, running from 2023 until 2026. The programme covers actions in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Türkiye. It enables the Beneficiaries to meet their reform agendas in the fields of human rights, rule of law and democracy and to comply with European
standards, which is also a priority for the EU enlargement process. 

The envelope of this facility amounts to ca. 41 million EUR (85% funded by the EU, 15% by the CoE).

*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence.