The Ministry of Justice, through the team of caretaker Justice Minister Andrey Yankulov, has drafted revisions to the Judicial System Act aimed at enhancing the election procedures for the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) and the SJC Inspectorate. According to a press release issued on Friday, the proposed legislation is slated for review by the next government to be elected by Parliament. The revisions introduce several mechanisms to bolster transparency.
A key provision mandates the formation of a special commission composed of professionals independent of political parties. This commission is tasked with providing an objective assessment of candidates’ integrity, strengths, and weaknesses. To ensure impartiality, the commission will be formed by bodies outside direct parliamentary control, including the general assemblies of the Supreme Courts, the President, the National Ombudsman, and the Supreme Bar Council.
These institutions will develop candidate profiles for submission to the parliamentary Legal Affairs Committee, which will subsequently be made public. Furthermore, the bill proposes establishing an additional provisional commission to verify the asset declarations of all candidates. This commission will involve financial experts from institutions such as the Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Chamber of Independent Appraisers of Bulgaria, and the Bulgarian National Bank.
The verification process will confirm the accuracy of declarations and investigate any transactions involving suspiciously low prices or unclear funding sources. The revisions also address the scope of judicial oversight. The Justice Minister would be granted the authority to challenge any instruments adopted by the SJC in court.
This aims to rectify a limitation in the current law, which restricts appeal rights primarily to directly affected individuals, thereby limiting judicial review, especially in single-candidate competition scenarios. The Ministry stated these changes are necessary for the proper functioning of the judicial system.
Topics: #ministry #judicial #election
