Public Perception of the Judiciary from the Perspective of Public and Global Mental Health.

Résumé

According to the European Commission's 2020 Rule of Law Report, in regard to Croatia, the level of perceived judicial independence remains among the lowest in the European Union, mostly due to perceived political corruption. The authors analyse the causes of such a perception of the Croatian judicial system, especially the length of criminal proceedings in high profile cases, and try to evaluate it by comparing available statistical information concerning the judiciary in Croatia with that of other EU countries. The authors also take into account and describe the effect which contemporary issues like news coverage by increasingly partisan media have on public perception of the judicial system, and polarization of public opinion on key social and legal matters. In conclusion, the authors give an overview of recent studies which found that corruption has a detrimental effect on mental health.