site.btaGovernment Has Asked EC to Conduct Analysis on Bulgarian Courts

Sofia, July 20 (BTA) - Supreme Court of Cassation (SCC) President Lozan Panov confirmed on Thursday Prosecutor General Sotir Tsatsarov's statement that the Government has asked the European Commission (EC) to conduct an analysis on the structure of Bulgarian courts.

Speaking at Thursday's Supreme Judicial Council's meeting, Tsatsarov said that there is unofficial information about the Government having made such a request to the EC's Structural Reform Support Service. The Prosecutor General had included on the meeting's agenda a proposal to ask the EC for a structural and functional analysis on courts in Bulgaria and the model for conducting investigations, but withdrew the item from the agenda.

Panov told journalists that he has received a letter a week ago, which said that the Commission's Structural Reform Support Service has been asked to conduct an analysis on the courts in Bulgaria.

SCC's President commented that this comes as a surprise to him, adding that it does not become clear from the letter what exactly the analysis' subject matter will be.

Panov explained that he has conferred on Monday with the President of the Supreme Administrative Court, Georgi Kolev, and a Deputy Justice Minister, to discuss what type of probe should be requested and in what field. Another meeting was held on Tuesday to discuss this with one of the European experts.

According to Panov, it is strange for the Government to be asking for such a probe, while the presidents of the supreme courts are being asked to say in which sectors it should be conducted.

Help is always useful, Panov said, adding, however, that this seems to him like a political move. According to him, the Government's actions are an attempt to buy time, which would ensure peace and quiet, at political and other levels, for the duration of the Bulgarian EU Presidency. He said that such an analysis would take a year, after which it could be months before a professional debate starts on its conclusions, just like with the report on the prosecuting magistracy.

Panov said that such an analysis would constitute a huge volume of work. He explained that the EC's Structural Reform Support Service is currently examining the request and could refuse to conduct an analysis on Bulgaria's courts. Panov further said that the subject matter of this analysis must be defined by August 20, while the Justice Ministry must also note the scope it should have.