Próba przejęcia kontroli nad systemem sądowniczym – węgierski model nieliberalnej demokracji
An Attempt to Take Control of the Judicial System: The Hungarian Model of Illiberal Democracy

Summary/Abstract: After the 2010 elections, the new Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced the creation of anew political system, which he described as illiberal democracy. Substantive reforms are based on populist ideology and aim to create anew legal order, affirming the dominance of asingle party, which, in his view, has the exclusive right to represent the Hungarian nation. All actions are aimed at maintaining influence and limiting the impact of actions outside political groups. In pursuit of its political agenda, the freedom of independent non-governmental organizations and the media was radically restricted, leading to their almost complete dependence on the government. The justice system was deemed particularly crucial to the success of the ongoing systemic transformation. To gain control over the third power, the courts were reorganized, their scope of operation was changed, and their close ties to the government were established, limiting the importance of judicial self-government and judicial independence. International institutions, primarily the European Union and the Council of Europe, stand in the way of complete control of the justice system. Successive government bills reforming the judiciary are passed by the Hungarian Parliament, often without respect for best practices in the legislative process, and then withdrawn under pressure from the EU, primarily financial. The Hungarian government’s strategy aims to prevent the restoration of democratic principles of the rule of law, because even in the face of losing power, the judiciary will be equipped with tools that could paralyze the functioning of another non-populist government.

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