The Cohort on Rule of Law and Access to Justice Champions was established to draft and deliver a Joint Statement and Call to Action on People-Centred Justice and Democracy during the Second Summit; engage interested governments, organizations, private sector actors, and donors to participate in the activities of the Cohort to other global rule of law and access to justice processes and facilitate cooperation with the Justice Action Coalition; encourage participating member states and organizations to formulate achievable high ambition commitments; and encourage and facilitate sharing around major achievements and main challenges for rule of law and justice reforms at the national and international levels. On 30 January 2023, the first cohort meeting was held with the involvement of interested countries and civil society partners. The meeting updated the group on their plans and how they will communicate together in the lead up to the second Summit, giving them the opportunity to learn more and ask questions.

On 30 March 2023 the Cohort announced an end to its activities with the launch of a 'Final Joint Statement and Call to Action', with the statement endorsed by 11 governments and 15 civil society organisations, including from the Global South. The document also features commitments from 9 governments and 11 civil society organisations. Anyone interested in more information on supporting equal justice for all is encouraged to visit the Pathfinders website here.

The rule of law and access to justice champions is a cross-cutting, foundational element of democracies: equal access to a consistent and predictable judicial system ensures that all citizens can enjoy the same rights on the same set of standards. Transforming justice systems by putting people at the centre and delivering equal access to justice at all is a necessary element for building stable and vibrant democracies.

The expected outcomes from this cohort are to release a Joint Statement and Call to Action on People-Centred Justice and Democracy; expand membership in the Justice Action Coalition, strengthen partnership between like-minded member states and civil society organizations on people-centred justice agenda, and contribute to sustained collaborative engagement beyond the Summit for Democracy 2023 vis-a-vis the Justice Action Coalition; and put forth specific high ambition commitments from individual cohort members to advance the Joint Statement and Call to Action on People-Centred Justice and Democracy. To achieve their objective and desired outcomes, the cohort organised several meetings between January and March 2023 to gather input and collaborate on the cohort’s outputs.

Relevant documents released by the cohort can be found in the links on the righthand side of the page, and any public events are listed below. We invite you to use the contact form on this portal if you have any contributions or corrections regarding this cohort. See an interview with one of the co-leads of the cohort, the Pathfinders for Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies, about what the Cohort stands for and what it has been able to accomplish here.

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Co leads

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  Dominican Republic

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  Kosovo

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  Pathfinders for Peaceful Just and Inclusive Societies

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  ABA Rule of Law Initiative

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  World Justice Project

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  Transparency International

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Documents

• Cohort Overview
• Cohort Roadmap
• Joint Statement and Call to Action