Eleven candidates to the SCJ and to the SCM Boards have been notified regarding the initiation of the evaluation procedure

Six candidates for the position of judge of the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) and five candidates for positions in the two Boards of the Superior Council of Magistracy (SCM) have received notifications from the Vetting Commission regarding the initiation of the evaluation process.  

Notifications were received by SCJ candidates: judge Grigore Manoli, attorneys-at-law Dumitru Mardari, Ruslan Berzoi, and Ludmila Bolocan, anti-corruption prosecutor Vladimir Adam, and judicial inspector Diana Ioniță, who will be evaluated under Law 65/2023. Candidates for positions in the Board for the selection and evaluation of judges of the SCM, judges Eugeniu Beșelea, Stanislav Grosu, Vitalie Pislariuc, and academic representative Ana Zabulică, as well as candidate for membership in the Disciplinary board of SCM, judge Sofia Aramă, have been notified and will be evaluated based on the criteria established by Law 26/2022.  

Notifications regarding the commencement of verifications include the Declaration of assets and personal interests, with updated data for the last 5 years, and the Declaration regarding the list of close persons in the judiciary, prosecution, and public service, combined into a single form, and the Ethics Questionnaire. The notified candidates shall complete and return the declarations to the Commission within 7 days, in the case of subjects of Law 26/2022, and within 10 days, in the case of subjects of Law 65/2023. By submitting the declarations and the questionnaire, the subjects confirm responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of the presented data.

Currently, the Commission is evaluating 16 candidates in the two SCM Boards, 16 candidates for the position of SCJ judge, and 2 incumbent SCJ judges, as well as 5 candidates for membership in the SCM. So far, the Commission has heard 11 subjects. Three evaluation reports have already been sent to the SCM with a proposal to pass the evaluation. Of these, the SCM has examined and accepted a report regarding a sitting SCJ judge. Currently, eight other evaluation reports are being drafted and will be submitted to the SCM for examination.

· The complete list of subjects undergoing evaluation by the Vetting Commission  

Note: The Vetting Commission simultaneously carries out three types of evaluation regarding different categories of subjects: vetting of SCJ (includes candidates and sitting SCJ judges), pre-vetting of candidates for membership in the SCM, who submitted applications after 1 September 2023, and in the two SCM Boards, and vetting of Court of Appeal judges and presidents and vice-presidents of courts. These three types of evaluations are carried out based on three different laws - Law 65/2023, Law 26/2022, and Law 252/2023, respectively.

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