IMPACT UPDATE: Celebrating 15 Years of Advancing the Rule of Law

It's been an exciting few months at WJP! As we gear up for the upcoming launch of the 2024 World Justice Project (WJP) Rule of Law Index, we're proud to reflect on our recent accomplishments and a milestone in our history.

Since our founding 15 years ago, WJP’s novel idea to rigorously measure adherence to the rule of law around the world has made it possible to demonstrate correlations that many had long suspected. Our data shows that where the rule of law is stronger, so is the economy, health, education, and peace.

On September 30, we celebrated 15 years of creating actionable data, building awareness of the foundational importance of the rule of law, and collaborating with rule of law champions worldwide to advance reforms that support communities of justice, opportunity, and peace.

At our 15th Anniversary Symposium at the U.S. National Archives, we also acknowledged the serious rule of law challenges of the current moment and invited leading voices from government and business to discuss a way forward 

WJP’s 15th Anniversary Celebration was made possible with the generous support of Google, Meta, Fredrikson, and WilmerHale.

Revealing the Latest Rule of Law Trends and Bright Spots

You're invited to help us build upon our 15-year legacy and mission to advance the rule of law around the world! 

Our October 23 global launch of the 2024 WJP Rule of Law Index will do more than reveal our comprehensive assessment of rule of law conditions across 142 countries and jurisdictions. It will highlight inspiring success stories from countries making rule of law progress. Despite troubling trends, thoughtful reforms are paying off.  

Click here to register now: https://bit.ly/2024WJPRuleofLawIndex 

Empowering Voters in the U.S. and Beyond 

In the lead-up to the highly anticipated U.S. election, we released a timely report on September 17. 

"U.S. Rule of Law Trends and the 2024 Election" identifies falling and polarized trust in government accountability, courts, and elections. However, several silver linings have also emerged. Americans share core rule of law values and 88% of those surveyed intend to vote this fall.  

To support voters at the polls, we highlighted local efforts to build trust and created a new Rule of Law Candidate Scorecard.  

Giving Innovators a Platform

On August 1, we gathered 30 incredible changemakers from 23 countries to exchange knowledge and compete in the World Justice Challenge 2024 The passionate finalists captivated attendees at our one-day democracy and the rule of law convening at the American Bar Association annual meeting in Chicago.  

Five outstanding projects from Brazil, Taiwan, Ghana, and the United States [Link each winner] were named winners for their innovative and replicable approaches to advancing the rule of law as the foundation of democracy. Polish Minister of Justice Adam Bodnar and other rule of law leaders also spoke at the convening.

Leveraging Data to Drive Action 

Our new strategic plan prioritizes using our data and knowledge to drive action. This quarter, WJP staff advanced our goals to advance policy change and rule of law progress in our three priority program areas: 

1. Government Accountability - To empower governments and civil society to strengthen checks on government powers and expand open government, we co-organized the 13th International Seminar on Fighting Corruption at the University of Guadalajara in Mexico on September 23-24.  

2. People-Centered Justice - In our work to close the global justice gap, WJP Chief Research Officer Alejandro Ponce was a key speaker in the workshop on people-centered justice research and evidence at the OECD Global Roundtable on Equal Access to Justice in Ottawa, Canada. His presentation leveraged WJP's global research to offer key insights on enhancing legal services accessibility worldwide. 

3. Environmental Rule of Law - In his August keynote speech at the Asia Pacific Mediation Forum in Papua New Guinea, WJP Asia Pacific Director Srirak Plipat highlighted the critical role of environmental rule of law in combating climate change. 

Gathering the Global Rule of Law Community 

Save the date for the next edition of the World Justice Forum on June 23 – 26, 2025 in Warsaw, Poland, in partnership with the Polish Ministry of Justice. Stay tuned for registration alerts, speaker announcements, and opportunities to contribute to Forum programming.