CRISIS AND LEGAL TRANSFORMATION: NORTH MACEDONIA'S COVID-19 EXPERIENCE.

The elevated mortality rates attributed to Covid-19, in conjunction with other concerning statistics such as traffic-related fatalities and corruption percentages, highlight the level of legal culture among citizens in the Republic of North Macedonia. This paper utilizes the Covid-19 pandemic in the Republic of North Macedonia as a case study to demonstrate the citizens' low level of legal culture. The concept of legal culture will be briefly explained, with a focus on external legal culture. Legal culture is deemed a vital factor for the functionality and democracy of a society and will be evaluated through the state's measures to prevent and control the pandemic. These measures encompassed the enforcement of mask-wearing, adherence to social distancing, and vaccination. The Republic of North Macedonia, a post-socialist country with 30 years of independence, has encountered challenges in transforming its political system and modernizing its legal framework. Although legal culture is a relatively recent concept in the sociology of law, it holds significant importance for the rule of law. This concept encompasses diverse indicators reflecting the level of legal culture in a specific country, with judicial institutions, the non-governmental sector, and education identified as key contributors to the development of legal culture [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]