Evaluation of candidates for the position of judge of the Supreme Court of Justice - LAUNCHED

The Vetting Commission has sent the candidates registered in the competition for the vacancy of the position of judge at the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) the 5 year- Declaration form and the Ethics Questionnaire, thus starting the process of their integrity evaluation. The notification of the initiation of the evaluation procedure was sent on 23 August, the day after the Commission received from the Superior Council of Magistracy (SCM) the list of 24 candidates who remained in the competition.

Candidates for the position of judge of the SCJ shall submit the declaration of assets and personal interests, with updated data for the last 5 years, including expenses during that period, the Ethics Questionnaire, as well as a declaration on the list of close persons who work or have worked in the last 5 years in the judiciary, the prosecutor’s office and the public service, within 10 days from the date of the request, as provided for by Law No. 65/2023 on the external evaluation of judges and candidates for the position of judge of the Supreme Court of Justice. The declarations and questionnaire have been approved by the Vetting Commission, and by submitting these documents, candidates declare on their own responsibility the truthfulness and completeness of the data submitted and consent to the processing of personal data.

The lack of a reasonable justification for the refusal to submit or the failure to submit the declarations or the Ethics Questionnaire within the deadline shall be grounds for the Commission to conclude that the candidate failed the evaluation.

Following the receipt of the declarations from candidates, the Vetting Commission will analyze the income and assets of the candidates and their families on the basis of extensive research of relevant data collected from public information systems and communications with the candidates and others.

𝙉𝙤𝙩𝙚: The Vetting Commission notes that two of the 24 candidates on the list submitted by the SCM, Yuri Lealin and Leonid Chirtoacă, have passed the integrity evaluation under the provisions of Law no. 26/2022 on some measures related to the selection of candidates for the position of member in the self-administration bodies of judges and prosecutors and will not be subject to repeated assessment, pursuant to article 3 para. (2) of Law no. 65/2023.

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