site.btaLozan Panov Is New Chairman of Supreme Court of Cassation

Lozan Panov Is New Chairman of Supreme Court of Cassation


Sofia, January 29 (BTA) - Lozan Panov on Thursday was elected
Chairman of the Supreme Court of Cassation. He was supported by
17 members of the Supreme Judicial Council with six votes
against. His opponent Pavlina Panova received six votes. Eleven
members voted against her and six abstained.

The voting took place after a day-long hearing in which the two
contenders presented their visions for reforms and highlighted
their priorities.

Panov said it was time to achieve consensus on reforms, which
the European Commission calls "rule of law". Panov said he was
for institutional reform and the division of the Supreme
Judicial Council into two colleges - magisterial and
prosecutorial. He vowed to introduce a mechanism for evaluating
the performance of magistrates and the weight of cases to create
an incentive scheme.

Panov said that the Supreme Court of Cassation had one of the
best case assignment systems but more can be done to protect it
from outside attacks. He proposed a public register of judges
who disqualify from participation in cases.

Panova, who is the court's current deputy chairman, said that
the judicial reforms should not be revolutionary but
evolutionary. According to her, the Court has a solid
reputation. She disagreed with her opponent about implementing
"surgical measures" and said there were no grounds for
qualifications about "rotten apples" in the system.
She agreed that the Supreme Judicial Council should have two
colleges and said that the case assignment system at the Sofia
City Court gave the impression of dependencies.