Der Rechtsstaat im Donauraum und darüber hinaus. Ein offener Begriff und ein offener Prozess
Rule of Law in the Danube Basin and Beyond. An Open Concept and Open Process

Summary/Abstract: The rule of law as a pan-European value is especially attractive for post-dictatorial societies because it symbolises a clear break with the past. After 1989, the East European states turned to West European models to either restore or – in some cases – install for the first time the rule of law. At that time, the Western rule of law was the result of a convergence of the Anglo-Saxon ‘rule of law’, the French ‘légalité’ and the ‘Rechtsstaat’ of the German-speaking countries. For the young Eastern democracies, the German ‘Rechtsstaat’ was an especially important point of reference.After three decades of intensive rule-of-law building, many East European legal systems are quite ‘modern’. This ‘modernness’ may now serve as a model to modernise old West European laws. Yet, East European law tends to be ‘modern’ as ‘law on the books’ only. By contrast, the ‘law in action’ carries many socialist legacies. It is hardly compatible with the rule of law. Even if the shortcomings of the rule of law in action are grave and seem to worsen with some countries turning to self-styled ‘illiberal’ paths, their written law has a quality superior to the old legislation in Western Europe.

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