site.btaSupreme Judicial Council Approves Measures in Response to Brussels Report

Supreme Judicial Council Approves Measures in Response to Brussels Report

Sofia, February 11 (BTA) - The Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) approved a set of measures in response to the latest European Commission report on Bulgaria's progress in the field of justice and home affairs, the SJC's Sonya Naidenova told the media on Thursday. Part of the measures concern improvements in the centralized system for random case assignment and the rules for electing administrative leaders in the judicial system. Other steps involve legislative changes providing for even distribution of cases among various judicial bodies.

Naidenova further said that a system has been developed to elect the SJC members by electronic means. There are plans to conduct a review of the SJC's disciplinary proceedings from the beginning of its term until the end of 2015 and the practice of the Supreme Administrative Court concerning the SJC's disciplinary proceedings. The rules for these proceedings will be streamlined, and standards will be set for disciplinary infringements, taking account of the workload of judicial officers.

The measures proposed by the SJC, along with proposals by other institutions, are to be included in an action plan which will be considered by Bulgaria's Council of Ministers, Naidenova said.

Asked by a journalist why the SJC has not come up with an opinion on the European Commission report, as it has done before, Naidenova said last week's discussion of the report can be regarded as an opinion of the SJC. She added that the planned measures are a way to respond to the Commission's recommendations.