The study “Phases of pre-vetting - the unseen face of justice reform” conducted by the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) and the Association of Administrative Lawyers of Moldova (AJAM) analyses the events that took place during the pre-vetting process over the period March 2022 - November 2024. The study describes and analyses the stages of the pre-vetting process, the difficulties encountered by candidates during the procedure, as well as the procedural gaps that generated controversies. The study addresses several aspects of the reform, namely: the rules of the game in pre-vetting; lack of fair play; changing the rules of the game during the game; the evaluation process from the candidates’ perspective; doubts about the integrity of members of the Pre-Vetting Commission; the unlimited possibilities of the Pre-vetting Commission; appealing to the Supreme Court of Justice; implementation of the Venice Commission recommendations for Law 26/2022 on Pre-Vetting; vetting models in Moldova and Albania in comparison. At the same time, the authors of the study come up with reform options to increase public trust in the Moldovan justice system.