The Ministry of Justice, through the team of caretaker Justice Minister Andrey Yankulov, has submitted revisions to the Judicial System Act designed to enhance the procedures governing the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) and its Inspectorate. According to a press release issued Friday, this draft legislation awaits consideration by the next government to be elected by Parliament. The proposed amendments introduce several layers of oversight for the election process.
First, the draft mandates the formation of a special, politically independent commission tasked with professionally assessing candidates. This body, comprising representatives from institutions outside direct parliamentary control—including the Supreme Courts, the President, the National Ombudsman, and the Supreme Bar Council—will evaluate candidates’ integrity and professional profiles for submission to the Parliamentary Legal Affairs Committee and public review. Furthermore, the bill establishes a second provisional commission dedicated to verifying the asset declarations of SJC and Inspectorate candidates.
This body will include experts from the Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Chamber of Independent Appraisers, and the Bulgarian National Bank to confirm the accuracy of declarations and investigate any transactions involving suspicious pricing or unclear funding sources. These procedural enhancements also extend the scope of verification to candidates from the judicial quota. Finally, the revisions grant the Justice Minister the authority to contest SJC decisions in court.
This addresses a current limitation where the right of appeal is restricted only to directly affected individuals, a gap that severely limits judicial review, particularly in single-candidate scenarios. The ministry stated these changes aim to strengthen the accountability mechanisms within the judicial structure.
Topics: #ministry #judicial #election
