The rule of law has a significant impact on economic growth, international trade, foreign direct investment, fragmentation of production processes, and in general on trust among individuals in a society – trust being an essential component of social capital. Within the time frame analyzed, the rule of law has weakened in Slovenia both in comparative and absolute terms. The lack of a satisfactory strengthening of the rule of law in Slovenia has resulted in a number of anomalies with regard to the public’s trust in the rule of law, entrepreneurship and markets, as well as overall trust among people in general. The importance of the last-mentioned issue is significant in the context of the historical fact that the unprecedented increase in prosperity from year 1800 to today is not rooted solely on three R’s of Revolution, Reformation, and Renaissance, but rather particularly on the expansion of ideas that liberated and ensured the dignity of the middle class. These same ideas are at present under great threat in Slovenia mainly due to the weak rule of law. This article tries to move from criticism to a constructive debate about the causes and possible solutions of problems in the Slovenian justice system. It highlights proposals for an organizational and ethical transformation of the Slovenian judiciary toward a stronger rule of law — not rule of men — which would maintain or even increase freedom for Slovenian citizens as well as their protection from abuses by the state.

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