The parliament approved in the first reading the draft amendments to the Constitution concerning the change in the procedure for the appointment of judges.
They also clarify the role of the Superior Council of Magistrates in the process of self-government of the judiciary, its composition and powers. One of the proposed changes concerns the deletion of the initial 5-year term for the appointment of judges under Art. 116 of the Constitution. Thus, judges of the courts of law will be appointed to office before reaching the age limit, by the President of Moldova, on the proposal of the Superior Council of Magistrates. At the same time, the President of the Republic of Moldova can only reject the candidacy proposed by the Supreme Council of Magistracy only once. The draft amendment to the Constitution is also aimed at unifying the procedures for the appointment of judges in all courts of the country, regardless of their level, including the Supreme Court of Justice. It is proposed that Superior Council of Magistrates' judges should be appointed to positions similar to judges of appellate courts and judges, that is, by the President of Moldova, at the suggestion of the Superior Council of Magistrates, and not by parliament. This change will reduce the influence of political factors on the procedure for the appointment of judges. “Accordingly, the exclusion of the requirement for seniority as a judge for at least 10 years for chairmen, vice-chairmen and judges of the Superior Council of Magistrates is aimed at improving the quality of Superior Council of Magistrates judges and persons with experience other than judicial, in order to exclude corporatism within the Superior Council of Magistrates", - noted the authors of the bill. Herewith, the Constitution will include a provision stating that judges have only functional immunity, in accordance with the law. Also, the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova will be supplemented with a new article, which will clearly state that the Superior Council of Magistracy is the guarantor of the independence of the judiciary. The bill also provides for the exclusion of the Prosecutor General and the Minister of Justice from the Superior Council of Magistrates. The Superior Council of Magistrates will consist of 12 members. It will include 6 judges elected by the general assembly of judges representing all levels of the courts, and 6 persons of high professional reputation and personal integrity, with experience in the field of law or other relevant field, who do not work in the legislative, executive and judicial authorities and do not belong to a political party. Another proposed change concerns the term of office of the Superior Council of Magistrates members, which will be 6 years. In the part related to the specification of the powers of the Superior Council of Magistrates, the draft law proposes to clearly establish that in the process of developing, approving and changing the budget of the courts, an advisory opinion of the Superior Council of Magistracy is required. The Superior Council of Magistrates has the right to submit proposals to the Parliament on the draft budget of the courts. The draft law on amendments to the Constitution was developed for the implementation of the National Action Plan for the implementation of the Association Agreement between the Republic of Moldova and the EU. The law will come into force after 6 months from the date of its publication in Monitorul Oficial.// 16.09.2021 — InfoMarket
