Revised procedures for publishing evaluation reports pursuant to a ruling by the Constitutional Court

The procedure for publishing the reports of the Judicial Vetting Commission has changed following the decision of the Constitutional Court issued on 16 January 2025. In this ruling, the Court reviewed the constitutionality of several provisions from Law 65/2023 and Law 252/2023, which regulate the external evaluation process (vetting).

Most of the contested provisions were dismissed by the Constitutional Court either as inadmissible (e.g., when a constitutional principle was not applicable) or on the merits, finding no constitutional violations. However, some aspects were deemed constitutional only if interpreted in a specific way, in line with the Court’s established case law. One such interpretation directly impacted the Commission’s approach to publishing evaluation reports.

The Constitutional Court ruled that Article 18, paragraph (4) of Law 252/2023, which addresses the publication of reasoned decisions by the SCM, is constitutional only on the condition that publication takes place after the expiration of the appeal period or, in cases where an appeal is filed, after a final decision is issued by the Supreme Court of Justice.

Accordingly, if the SCM’s reasoned decisions cannot be published before the aforementioned procedural stages, it follows that the Commission’s evaluation reports must also remain unpublished until then. Publishing them prior to the conclusion of the appeal process could infringe on the evaluated individual’s right to privacy, a fundamental right protected by the Constitution.

What was the prior practice for publishing evaluation reports, and how did it change following the Constitutional Court’s ruling?

Before the Constitutional Court’s decision, the Commission published all evaluation reports on its official website within three days of the CSM’s adoption of a reasoned decision concerning those reports.

Following the ruling, reports shall be published within three days of either:

• the expiration of the appeal period against the CSM’s decision, or
• the issuance of a final judgment by the Supreme Court of Justice rejecting the appeal or confirming the outcome of the evaluation.

Publication shall be subject to appropriate safeguards for the protection of the evaluated person’s privacy and that of other individuals involved.

In line with the Constitutional Court’s interpretation, this revised publication procedure shall apply exclusively to reports adopted after the date of the ruling.

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