Rule of Law Projects

Mary Noel Pepys has successfully developed, implemented, and evaluated legal and judicial reform initiatives promoting transparent and fair justice systems on behalf of the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the World Bank, the United Nations Development Programme, and numerous U.S. rule of law contractors over the past 30 years.

Click a Rule of Law Project below for details.

Algeria 

  • Authored Report on the Justice System of the Democratic Republic of Algeria.

Bangladesh

  • Evaluation Team Leader of USAID’s Justice For All Program in Bangladesh. 

Bulgaria

  • Authored Judicial Reform Index for Bulgaria. 

Georgia 

  • Evaluation Team Leader of USAID’s Promoting Rule of Law in Georgia; 
  • Evaluation Team Leader of USAID’s Judicial Independence and Legal Empowerment Project in Georgia. 

Jordan

  • Co-authored Jordan Rule of Law Assessment and Evaluation of USAID Judicial Interventions. 

Kosovo 

  • Evaluation Team Leader of USAID’s Contract Law Enforcement Program in Kosovo;
  • Evaluation Team Leader of USAID’s Effective Rule of Law Program and Kosovo Legal Profession Program in Kosovo. 

Lebanon 

  • Assessment Team Leader of the Rule of Law Assessment of Lebanon of 2015;
  • Assessment Team Member of the Rule of Law Assessment of Lebanon of 2006; 
  • Co-authored Technical Approach for Lebanon and Analysis of the Political Situation in Lebanon. 

Macedonia

  • Co-authored Evaluation Report of the Macedonia Court Modernization Project.

Morocco

  • Authored the Rule of Law Assessment of Morocco.

Near East 

  • Evaluation Team Leader of the US State Department’s five Rule of Law programs in the Near East. 

Nepal 

  • Authored Strengthen Rule of Law Program in Nepal.

Papua New Guinea

  • Authored Papua New Guinea Legal and Judicial Sector Assessment. 

Russia 

  • Evaluation Team Leader of the US State Department’s Transnational Crime and Rule of Law Programs in Russia; 
  • Authored Assessment of the Sustainability of Russian-American Judicial Partnership II Project. 

Ukraine

  • Evaluation Team Leader of USAID’s Access to Justice and Legal Empowerment Project in Ukraine
  • Co-authored Assessment of the Law of Ukraine on the Judiciary and Status of Judges;
  • Authored Combating Corruption and Strengthening Rule of Law in Ukraine;
  • Authored The Draft Law on Status of Judges and Draft Law on the Judiciary Comport with International Standards.

Albania

  • Authored Corruption within the Judiciary of the Republic of Albania.

Azerbaijan 

  • Authored Analytical Paper on Corruption in the Judicial Sector. 

Georgia

  • Team Leader and Co-author of Rule of Law/Anti-Corruption Assessment. 

Yemen

  • Authored Concept Paper: Judicial Anti-Corruption Hotline for Yemen.

Kosovo

  • Developed a strategy for the justice system of Kosovo. 

Mongolia 

  • Developed The Five-Year Strategic Plan for the Justice System of Mongolia.

West Bank and Gaza 

  • Authored Report on Public Dialogue Process on Justice System Reform in Palestine. 

Bulgaria 

  • Assessed the Distance Learning Education Program for attorneys;
  • Assessed the Magistrate Apprenticeship Program. 

Egypt

  • Assessed the National Center for Judicial Studies of Egypt.

Kazakhstan

  • Authored Judicial Education Strategy for Kazakhstan.

Moldova

  • Assessed the Institutional Capacity of the National Institute of Justice of Moldova.

Russia 

  • Assessed a Distance Learning Education Program for Russian attorneys.  

Serbia

  • Authored the Report on the Judicial Training Center of Serbia.

Ukraine

  • Assessed International Assistance to Enhance the Quality of Legal Education in Ukraine, Challenges and Opportunities. 

Uzbekistan

  • Assessed the Legal Training Center of Uzbekistan.
  • Drafted codes of ethics for attorneys and judges and conducted seminars on the draft codes in Bulgaria, Latvia, and Slovakia. 
  • Supported the enhancement of women in the legal profession and the development of women’s legal associations, women’s bar associations, and women’s judges associations in Algeria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Egypt, Lebanon, and Nepal.

Supported the creation and development of legal and judicial training centers with a focus on self-sustainability in Albania, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Serbia,Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

  • Enhanced the development of nascent judges associations in Armenia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Tajikistan.
  • Strengthened regional and national bar associations in Bulgaria and Croatia.
  • Developed curriculum, accreditation standards, and legal publications for law faculties in Bulgaria, Slovakia, and Slovenia.
  • Conducted a Judicial Education course for the Supreme Court in Kazakhstan.
  • Developed proposals for USAID and US State Department rule of law projects in Afghanistan, Albania, Cote d’Ivoire, Guatemala, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Iraq, Lebanon, Liberia, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Nepal, Pakistan, Peru, Serbia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and West Bank.
  • Monitored Presidential Election in Ukraine;
  • Monitored Parliamentary Elections in Mongolia.
  • Supported the creation and development of the Multinational Force and Observers Peacekeeping Force in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt.

The rule of law is a set of principles for ensuring an orderly and just society where no one is above the law, everyone is treated equally under the law, and everyone is held accountable to the same laws, there are clear and fair processes for enforcing laws, there is an independent judiciary, and human rights are guaranteed for all.

American Bar Association