The new members of the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) are expected to become known next March, said Minister of Justice Veronica Mihailov-Moraru. According to the official, the commission for the assessment of candidates for member of the SCJ launched the process and has examining the files. The appointment of the new members of the Supreme Court of Justice is a condition put forward by the EU and is designed to restore the citizens’ trust in justice, IPN reports.
The minister noted that the reformation of the SCJ will increase the system’s credibility and will ensure the uniform application of the legislation in the justice system. The number of SCJ members was decreased by law from 33 to 20 and the extraordinary assessment of the new composition of the SCJ is mandatory.
“It is an important reform for our judicial system as the Supreme Court of Justice for the first time will change its composition, will have judges chosen from among civil society. I refer to lawyers, prosecutors, teachers of law with good reputation and with professional experience. The duties of the Supreme Court of Justice were also changes and the Court’s role will be to unify judicial practices as there are many apparently similar situations with fully different decisions and the citizens do not have any predictability as to how a case can be solved. Commission No. 2 took up its duties in June and has now finished collecting information about the 24 candidates who will become judges of the Supreme Court of Justice. The assessment commission already set the quizzing sessions. We hope that the first decisions will be adopted by end-December,” Veronica Mihailov-Moraru stated in the program “Emphasis on Today” on TVR Moldova channel.
On November 27, the assessment commission examined the first three judges who aspire to the post of SCJ member. The minister is hopeful that the whole process will be completed by March.
“We want the Supreme Court of Justice reform to be finished as swiftly as possible so that we have a corps of upright, professional judges who will restore the citizens’ trust in justice. We were assured that the decisions concerning the assessment of candidates will be in place by the end of January, but we realize that the process is complex. That’s why we expect to have the picture complete at the beginning of March and this is in compliance with the EU’s condition,” said the minister.
The commission for the assessment of candidates for judge of the Supreme Court of Justice consists of six members. Three of them, who are Moldovan citizens, were proposed by parliamentary groups. These are Iurie Gațcan, Andrei Bivol and Lilian Enciu. The other three members were named at the suggestion of the development partners. These are Lavly Perling, Maria Giuliana Civinini and Scott Bales.
