If a judge is investigated for abusing office or authority or for offenses that harm the image of justice, the one-off redundancy pay will be suspended until a final court judgment is passed. The judges convicted while on the job will be striped of the special pension and will receive an old-age pension set in general conditions. This is provided in a bill that was given a first reading by Parliament, IPN reports.
“This means that when a judge, even if this was removed from the system, is convicted for an offense committed while holding the post of judge, the special pension will stop to be paid to this. It should be clear that the special pension and the one-off redundancy pay are not an absolute right guaranteed to the judge. It is a privilege offered to the judge for the special status that implies particular rules that need to be respected,” said the head of the Parliament’s commission on appointments and immunities Olesea Stamate.
The MP noted that the bill differentiates between ordinary resignation and honorable resignation. When a judge who committed offenses that discredit the justice system or affect the honor and dignity of judge resigns, this will not be considered honorable resignation.
By this bill, the procedure for naming all the judges is unified. The judges will be appointed by the President at the suggestion of the Superior Council of Magistracy (SCM), not by Parliament. However, the transfer from one court to another court of the same or lower level will not require the President’s consent.
Other amendments refer to the composition of the Superior Council of Magistracy. This way, the six non-judge members of the Council will not need to be law professors. They can be specialists in law or in other relevant areas. The members will serve a six-year term without the possibility of reelection. A SCM member can be dismissed by the votes of two thirds of the Council members.
