A total number of 67 candidates for positions in the self-administration bodies of judges and prosecutors participated in the extraordinary evaluation process conducted by the Pre-Vetting Commission in order to establish their eligibility for becoming a member of the Superior Council of Magistracy (SCM) or the Superior Council of Prosecutors (SCP). So far, the Commission completed the evaluation of 59 candidates out of 67: almost 90% of the decisions are issued, decisions on applicants from the last group of candidates to SCM, submitted by the Parliament remaining pending.
The Commission assessed the financial and ethical integrity of:
* 28 judges;
* 17 prosecutors;
* 22 representatives of civil society with professional experience in the field of law or other relevant field, as follows: 21 non-judge candidates to SCM, submitted by the Parliament on 9 July 2022 and 5 May 2023 and one non-prosecutor candidate, proposed by the Academy of Sciences to the position of member of the SCP.
Out of a total of 67 candidates, 36% (24 candidates) were women and 64% (43 candidates) were men. Out of the total of 67 evaluated candidates, 52 went through the full pre-vetting process, representing 79% of candidates. Of the 59 candidates whose evaluation is currently completed, 16 received passing decisions and 43 received failing decisions. Of the total 43 failing decisions, 14 involved either withdrawal from the competition or the failure to submit the documents required by law. The remaining 29 candidates who failed the evaluation had completed the full evaluation process.
As previously reported, out of a total of 40 SCM candidates, five judges and three non-judges passed the evaluation, which is a pass rate of 18% for judges and 25% for non-judges. The rate for non-judicial candidates for the SCM may change with the issuance of the last decisions on the second group of candidates recently proposed by the Parliament. The pass rate among prosecutor candidates to SCP is 41% – out of the 17 candidates registered in the contest, eight passed and ten failed the evaluation. In four of the ten failing decisions, the candidates withdrew or did not timely submit the documents required by law. The only non-prosecutor candidate evaluated passed the evaluation.
Pre-Vetting Commission decisions are published only with the candidate’s consent, pursuant to art. 13 para. (7) of Law No. 26/2022. Of 59 decisions sent to candidates as of 27 July 2023, all 16 passing decisions had been published on the Commission’s website. Of 43 failing decisions, only 26 were published.
The hearings of the candidates in the pre-vetting process are public, except when full or in part are closed for reasons of public order, privacy or morality, according to art. 12 para. (2) of Law No. 26/2022. The video recording of the hearings is posted on the Commission’s website within 24 hours from the hearing. Out of 67 evaluated candidates, 52 chose to participate at the public hearing of the Commission, while 3 requested to be evaluated solely on the basis of the information accumulated by the Commission. Four of the 52 public hearings had closed sessions. All public hearings are available at https://www.youtube.com/@comisia.prevetting.
As of 27 July 2023, 18 SCM judge candidates, 4 non-judge SCM candidates and 5 SCP prosecutor candidates who failed the evaluation have appealed the decisions of the Pre-Vetting Commission to the Supreme Court of Justice. In two of these cases, the Court upheld the decisions of the Pre-Vetting Commission; the other 25 appeals are pending.
