Kosovo Constitutional Justice Initiative

2008 – 2012

Launched in June 2008 under a grant from the UK Department for International Development (DFID), the Kosovo Constitutional Justice Initiative played an essential role in the development of the new Constitutional Court of Kosovo. At the beginning of the project, the Court existed only in the text of the Constitution; at its conclusion, the Court stood as the most respected and influential judicial institution in the country. With its authority to review legislation and individual complaints of rights violations, the Court is the ultimate check on legislative and executive power in Kosovo and the final arbiter of the meaning of constitutional human rights provisions. The Court’s landmark rulings include a decision that resulted in the removal of a sitting President from office, a decision clarifying key aspects of parliamentary immunity, and a decision protecting the rights of minorities in the selection of municipal symbols.