Enforceability of International Rule of Law Benchmarks in Legislative Process: The Abrogation of Secondary Legislation in Kosovo

Abstract This article examines the enforcement process of the international rule of law benchmarks by the Government of Kosovo through their internalization into domestic legislation. Particular attention is paid to the legal benchmarks established in the Rule of Law Checklist adopted by the Venice Commission, which, among others, provides guidelines on the extent of delegation of the legislative powers from parliament to the government. More specifically, this article presents a legal analysis of legal measures taken by the Government of Kosovo to enforce legal benchmarks of the Rule of Law Checklist of the Venice Commission into domestic legislation. This has been done through the evaluation of compliance with its sub-legal acts with specific laws and abrogation of sub-legal acts that lacked specific legal authorization, and therefore did not comply with rule of law benchmarks. Overall, this article seeks to demonstrate the distinct practical value of the rule of law elements in the development processes, given the indispensable role of stable and predictable legal processes in the functioning of institutions.