Judge Ion Bulhac from the Central Court of Appeal has passed the external evaluation, after the Superior Council of Magistracy rejected the report of the vetting Commission, which proposed his non-promotion. The magistrate was part of the judicial panels that examined the appeal in the case of the former mayor of Boldurești, as well as the case in which the fugitive Ilan Sor was convicted, reports IPN.

The CSM has found that the deficiencies identified in the cases examined at the European Court of Human Rights involving Judge Ion Bulhac represent errors of legal interpretation, of a decision-making nature, and not arbitrary acts. The Council points out that only very serious mistakes can justify the exclusion of a judge from the system.

According to the CSM, in the criticized cases, Judge Ion Bulhac served as a member of collegial panels, without being their president or reporting judge, having at that stage a limited professional experience. These aspects diminish the level of individual guilt that could be attributed to him.

The Vetting Commission’s report on the non-promotion of Judge Ion Bulhac did not gather the necessary number of votes in the CSM. Three members voted for maintaining the conclusion of non-promotion, while seven voted against. Consequently, the Council rejected the report and acknowledged the external evaluation’s promotion by the magistrate.