site.btaGovernment Approves Bulgaria's Position on a Request for a Preliminary Ruling from a Court in Slovakia before the Court of Justice of the European Union

The government Wednesday approved Bulgaria's position on a request for a preliminary ruling from the Administrative Court in Bratislava, Slovakia, on measures to support and protect whistleblowers.

The purpose of the proceedings is to establish whether member states should provide for the possibility for the competent authorities to participate in legal proceedings before national courts in relation to the application of the support and protection measures provided for in the Directive on Article 47 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.

Bulgaria takes the position that, in transposing the Directive, member states should have the right to determine whether the competent authority should have the power to intervene in legal proceedings, guided by the principles of proportionality and effectiveness. 

They may decide whether such involvement is necessary to ensure protection against retaliation or whether other effective mechanisms exist to protect the rights of whistleblowers. 

Such a decision should also take into account national specificities.