site.btaParliament Passes Judicial System Act Amendments on First Reading

Parliament Passes Judicial System Act Amendments on First Reading

Sofia, June 29 (BTA) - Bulgaria's Parliament Wednesday passed on first reading amendments to the Judicial System Act moved by the Council of Ministers. The vote was 116 in favour, 5 against and 10 abstentions.

The movers argue that the amendments are prompted by the revisions to the Constitution. One of the objectives is to solidify judicial self-governance as a means of curbing administrative forms of influence. The most important functions are to be assigned to judges' general assemblies, which will determine the number and complement of the divisions, will hear the candidates for president and vice president of the relevant court, will give opinions on the nominations and will determine the distribution of cases by subject matter. Court presidents will be largely limited to organizer functions: managing the property of the court and directing the administration.

Safeguards of individual independence of prosecutors and investigating magistrates are provided by banning oral orders on the handling of cases and case files. The amendments provide that preliminary checks must be completed within three months. Standing appraisal commissions are to be set up, to gather information for the needs of the individual units and each magistrate. Clear rules for the secondment of magistrates are laid down. The Inspectorate with the Supreme Judicial Council, which conducts the checks, will have a larger administration.

Justice Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva said that the bill proposes the most sweeping reform of the organic law of the judiciary in 25 years and the amendments directly address the celerity and quality of judicial proceedings.

"Apart from the reform in the courts and prosecution offices, a large part of the amendments concern magistrates' career development, evaluation and responsibility," she said. "The task of the Government is to propose a text that best suits the needs of the public rather than of one judicial authority or another, and this is precisely what this draft does," the Justice Minister argued.

BSP-Left Bulgaria said that the amendments will aggravate rather than solve the problems of the system. "Unfortunately, the judicial reform is like your other reforms: unclear, aimless, and with an unclear impact," MP Chavdar Georgiev commented.

The Movement for Rights and Freedoms disagreed with the introduction of judicial self-governance. MP Chavdar Georgiev believes it is ill-advised to make administrative heads dependent on their subordinates.

"Undoubtedly, the bill is strong in its part on judicial self-governance and weak in overcoming the deficiencies of the prosecution service," according to Reformist Bloc MP Radan Kanev.