First hearings in the evaluation process of judges from the Central Court of Appeal

The Judicial Vetting Commission conducted today the first hearings within the external evaluation process of appellate courts in the Republic of Moldova, in accordance with the provisions of Law 252/2023 on the external evaluation of judges and prosecutors. During today’s session, the following judges from the Central Court of Appeal were heard: Olga Cojocaru, Ion Bulhac, and Denis Băbălău.

For the hearings conducted under Law 252/2023, the six members of the Commission were divided into two panels of three members each, designated as Panel A and Panel B. Each panel included both national and international members. Today’s hearings were conducted by Panel A, chaired by the Vice President of the Commission, Andrei Bivol, alongside members Lavly Perling and Lilian Enciu.

During the hearings, the judges were questioned regarding aspects related to financial and/or ethical integrity. The discussions focused on analyzing the concerns identified by the Commission in relation to the integrity criteria stipulated by law. In the cases of Judges Olga Cojocaru and Ion Bulhac, certain aspects required the hearings to be conducted partially behind closed doors, in accordance with requests approved by the Commission. The hearing of Judge Denis Băbălău was conducted entirely in a public session. All three judges requested and received the evaluation materials.

To ensure transparency in the process, video recordings of the hearings will be published within three days in both Romanian and English on www.vettingmd.eu and the Commission’s YouTube channel. Exceptions apply to segments conducted in closed session, which will not be made public but will be included in the evaluation files.

Tomorrow, February 5, the hearings will continue with Diana Ioniță, a candidate for the position of judge at the Supreme Court of Justice, as well as Judges Silvia Cecan, Alexandru Spoială, and Ala Malîi from the Central Court of Appeal.

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