site.btaSupreme Administrative Court Asks Constitutional Court about Terminated Prosecutor General Election

The Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) has submitted questions to the Constitutional Court regarding the terminated procedure for the election of prosecutor general and the inconsistency of provisions of the Judicial System Act and the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria, the court announced in a press release April 7, 2025.

SAC has suspended proceedings in the case of the cancelled prosecutor general election procedure. The Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) terminated the procedure on January 23, 2025. Acting Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov appealed the termination of the procedure by the Plenum of the SJC to the Supreme Administrative Court on February 6, 2025.

The case has been suspended until the ruling of the Constitutional Court.

The election procedure was terminated after the National Assembly adopted legislative amendments, which prohibit members of the SJC whose mandate has expired from participating in the nomination of Prosecutor General candidates and voting on his election. The only candidate for prosecutor general in the procedure at the time was Sarafov.

The Supreme magistrates accept that there is a discrepancy between the provisions of the transitional and final provisions of the law on amendments and supplements to the Judicial System Act and the Constitution. According to them, with these provisions, the legislator hinders the exercising of the powers and decision-making of a constitutionally provided and permanently operating body such as the Supreme Judicial Council, in its entirety.

"The conclusion that can be drawn is that by adopting the contested legal provisions, the National Assembly, on one hand, seizes functions assigned by the Constitution to the SJC, and on the other – under a certain hypothesis – with the expiration of the mandate of SJC members, prevents the exercising of the powers of the body in its entirety. The seizure and limitation of the functions and powers of a constitutionally established body by the legislator is in clear contradiction with Article 8 of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria," the SAC points out and adds that parliament takes away the powers of the SJC with the relevant provisions.

On January 23, an extraordinary session of the Plenum of the SJC was convened in order to rule on the postponed procedure for the election of a prosecutor general. At the session, the Plenum voted to terminate the election procedure.

On January 15, Parliament finally adopted at second reading amendments to the Judicial System Act, which terminate the initiated procedure for the election of a prosecutor general. A day later, the SJC Plenum postponed the election procedure.