The 2026 EU Justice Scoreboard contains new, extended indicators on accessibility to justice for people with disabilities. This is the first time since 2022 that it is accessibility is considered.
The Scoreboard provides an annual assessment of Justice systems in the EU. The information gathered by the scoreboard is essential to the European Commission’s work of monitoring the Member States’ justice systems. This year’s edition builds on previous years’ contributions by introducing new information on accessibility to justice for people with disabilities, selected powers of equality bodies, specific arrangements for child-friendly justice/proceedings, prevention of corruption and the digitalisation of justice.
Main findings
The findings highlighted that:
- Only 5 Member States have the full range of digital solutions: Estonia, Spain, Latvia, Malta and Slovakia.
- One Member State had no digital solutions in place: Portugal.
The majority of Member States – 23 of 27- had ensured accessible publication of judgments online in at least one type of proceeding. 18 Member States also provided accessible online payment of court fees in at least one type of proceeding.
The remaining digital solutions varied in their availability among Member States. In fact, the data reveals that having any one solution in one type of proceeding was not necessarily a guarantee of its availability in other types of proceedings.
The main conclusion is that still much work remains to be done to improve the digital accessibility of first instance court proceedings.
How is access to online information?
The report also considered the availability of online information about the judicial system for the general public. This is especially relevant for persons with disabilities, as they can face disproportionate barriers due to a lack of accessible information.
Member States generally had most of the indicators in place, however, there is room for improvement. For example, the report notes that 18 Member States do not have chatbots for assisting citizens in finding information about the justice system, a feature which can be easily added.
Methodology of the Scoreboard
The 2026 report focuses on the use of accessible digital solutions for persons with disabilities, evaluating the availability of:
- Accessible online publication of judgments;
- Accessible online access to court judgments to the general public;
- Accessible online payment of court fees;
- Using accessible distance communication technology, in particular videoconferencing, to conduct and follow court proceedings;
- Accessible application for legal aid online;
- Accessible electronic file and related documents of their ongoing cases.
- accessible digital solutions at first instance courts – which was first considered in 2022.
The availability of these is evaluated at first instance courts for criminal proceedings, civil and commercial proceedings and administrative proceedings.